A Project by Eduardo Chillida for a Monumental Sculpture in Dallas

This study by the Spanish artist for an installation in Dallas, Texas, plays on the tensions between heavy mass and empty space, between rigid geometric forms and dynamic elements.

A spatial dialogue is created by two vertical cylinders fixed to a rectangular steel base with a rough, oxidized texture: these two simple forms face each other, seemingly close to touching, connected by an invisible element like a joint, a fragment of void in tension. The project presented, combining De Música, proyecto para Dallas VIII and De Música, proyecto para Dallas IX, is the maquette for De Música, Dallas XV, a monumental sculpture (426.7 x 91.4 x 152.4 cm/168 x 36 x 60 in) in COR-TEN steel created in 1989 by Eduardo Chillida for the esplanade of the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center. Meyerson Symphony Center: a prestigious concert hall in the heart of Dallas, designed by the famous architect I.M. Pei, with whom Chillida worked closely. Initially, I.M. Pei had in mind a very different sculpture, more tree-like and composed of a single iron column, as shown in a drawing accompanied by a personal note to I.M.Pei preserved in the Chillida-Leku museum in Hernani, on the Spanish Basque coast. Seeing the model of the site where his sculpture would be integrated, the artist radically rethought its form to achieve this contrast between the geometric rigor of the columns and the dynamic tension of the central connection, evoking both stability and movement, two key notions in music and art. Steel gives the piece an impression of solidity and permanence, while adorning the surface with a subtle play of metallic nuances, ranging from golden brown to dark gray.

Eduardo Chillida’s place in the art market is solid, and these small sculptures are likely to attract a great deal of interest from collectors…

Soccer, Architecture, Sculpture and Philosophy!

Eduardo Chillida is one of the leading figures in 20^th -century sculpture, renowned for his monumental works in steel, wrought iron and stone. A native of San Sebastian in Spain’s Basque Country, he is renowned for his exploration of the relationship between matter, space and light. Initially destined for a career as a professional soccer player, he turned to art following an injury on the pitch. After studying architecture, he moved to sculpture, developing an artistic language based on the interaction between mass and void, inspired in particular by his philosophical exchanges with Martin Heidegger. The artist worked with space as a material in its own right, essential to the life and balance of the work. Like silence in music, emptiness is no longer an absence but an essential element of the composition. Eduardo Chillida’s place in the art market is solid, and our small sculptures, signed as works in their own right, can arouse strong interest from collectors because of their intimate, experimental character.

COLLECTION PARTICULIERE PARISIENNE

Friday 21 March 2025 – 14:00 (CET) – Live

Salle 6 – Hôtel Drouot – 75009 Paris

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