Juan Carlos Castagnino
Encyclopedia
Juan Carlos Castagnino was an Argentine
painter, architect, muralist and sketch artist.
Born in the city of Mar del Plata
, he studied in the Escuela de Bellas Artes in Buenos Aires
, and became a disciple of Lino Enea Spilimbergo
and Ramón Gómez Cornet.
By the end of the 1920s, he became a member of the Communist Party of Argentina
. In 1933 he joined the first Argentine artists' guild, and later that year he exhibited at the National Fine Arts Hall in Buenos Aires
. His work, predominantly realist in his earlier years, became more figurative
, later on, and though his Communist affiliation was reflected in numerous works with social undertones, he painted a wide variety of subject matter.
Along with Antonio Berni
, Spilimbergo and Mexican muralist
David Alfaro Siqueiros
, he created a series of murals for a villa belonging to local businessman Natalio Botana, in Don Torcuato. Castagnino traveled to Paris
in 1939, where he attended the atelier of cubist painter André Lhote
, later traveling across Europe perfecting his art and in the company of Georges Braque
, Fernand Léger
and Pablo Picasso
, among others. Castagnino returned to Argentina in 1941, where he enrolled at the University of Buenos Aires
and obtained a degree in architecture
.
He received numerous awards in subsequent years, including the Grand Prize of Honor of the Argentine National Hall (1961), the Medal of Honor at Expo '58
(Brussels
, 1958), and a special mention for his drawings at the II Mexico City
Biennale of 1962. His illustrations for a EUDEBA (University of Buenos Aires Press) edition of José Hernández's Martín Fierro
(the national poem of Argentina), gained wide recognition.
Castagnino died in Buenos Aires in 1972. Following its relocation to the landmark Villa Ortiz Basualdo, the Miunicipal Museum of Art
in his native Mar del Plata, to which the artist had contributed over 130 works, was renamed in his honor in 1982.
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
painter, architect, muralist and sketch artist.
Born in the city of Mar del Plata
Mar del Plata
Mar del Plata is an Argentine city located on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean, south of Buenos Aires. Mar del Plata is the second largest city of Buenos Aires Province. The name "Mar del Plata" had apparently the sense of "sea of the Río de la Plata region" or "adjoining sea to the Río de la Plata"...
, he studied in the Escuela de Bellas Artes in Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
, and became a disciple of Lino Enea Spilimbergo
Lino Enea Spilimbergo
Lino Enea Spilimbergo was an Argentine artist and engraver, and he is considered to be one of the country's most important painters....
and Ramón Gómez Cornet.
By the end of the 1920s, he became a member of the Communist Party of Argentina
Communist Party of Argentina
The Communist Party of Argentina is a communist party from Argentina. It was founded in 1918.At the 2005 legislative elections, the Party joined the Encuentro Amplio with other left-wing parties in Buenos Aires and Buenos Aires Province...
. In 1933 he joined the first Argentine artists' guild, and later that year he exhibited at the National Fine Arts Hall in Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
. His work, predominantly realist in his earlier years, became more figurative
Figurative art
Figurative art, sometimes written as figurativism, describes artwork—particularly paintings and sculptures—which are clearly derived from real object sources, and are therefore by definition representational.-Definition:...
, later on, and though his Communist affiliation was reflected in numerous works with social undertones, he painted a wide variety of subject matter.
Along with Antonio Berni
Antonio Berni
Delesio Antonio Berni was a figurative artist, born in Rosario, province of Santa Fe, Argentina. He worked as a painter, an illustrator and an engraver. His father, Napoleón Berni, was an immigrant tailor from Italy...
, Spilimbergo and Mexican muralist
Mexican Muralism
Mexican muralism is a Mexican art movement. The most important period of this movement took place primarily from the 1920s to the 1960s, though it exerted an influence on later generations of Mexican artists...
David Alfaro Siqueiros
David Alfaro Siqueiros
José David Alfaro Siqueiros was a social realist painter, known for his large murals in fresco that helped establish the Mexican Mural Renaissance, together with works by Diego Rivera and José Clemente Orozco, and also a member of the Mexican Communist Party who participated in an...
, he created a series of murals for a villa belonging to local businessman Natalio Botana, in Don Torcuato. Castagnino traveled to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
in 1939, where he attended the atelier of cubist painter André Lhote
André Lhote
André Lhote was a French sculptor and painter of figure subjects, portraits, landscapes and still life. He was also very active and influential as a teacher and writer on art....
, later traveling across Europe perfecting his art and in the company of Georges Braque
Georges Braque
Georges Braque[p] was a major 20th century French painter and sculptor who, along with Pablo Picasso, developed the art style known as Cubism.-Early Life:...
, Fernand Léger
Fernand Léger
Joseph Fernand Henri Léger was a French painter, sculptor, and filmmaker. In his early works he created a personal form of Cubism which he gradually modified into a more figurative, populist style...
and Pablo Picasso
Pablo Picasso
Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso known as Pablo Ruiz Picasso was a Spanish expatriate painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist, and stage designer, one of the greatest and most influential artists of the...
, among others. Castagnino returned to Argentina in 1941, where he enrolled at the University of Buenos Aires
University of Buenos Aires
The University of Buenos Aires is the largest university in Argentina and the largest university by enrollment in Latin America. Founded on August 12, 1821 in the city of Buenos Aires, it consists of 13 faculties, 6 hospitals, 10 museums and is linked to 4 high schools: Colegio Nacional de Buenos...
and obtained a degree in architecture
Architecture of Argentina
The Architecture of Argentina can be said to start at the beginning of the Spanish colonisation, though it was in the 18th century that the cities of the country reached their splendour...
.
He received numerous awards in subsequent years, including the Grand Prize of Honor of the Argentine National Hall (1961), the Medal of Honor at Expo '58
Expo '58
Expo 58, also known as the Brussels World’s Fair, Brusselse Wereldtentoonstelling or Exposition Universelle et Internationale de Bruxelles, was held from 17 April to 19 October 1958...
(Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
, 1958), and a special mention for his drawings at the II Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
Biennale of 1962. His illustrations for a EUDEBA (University of Buenos Aires Press) edition of José Hernández's Martín Fierro
Martín Fierro
Martín Fierro is a 2,316 line epic poem by the Argentine writer José Hernández. The poem was originally published in two parts, El Gaucho Martín Fierro and La Vuelta de Martín Fierro . The poem is, in part, a protest against the modernist tendencies of Argentine president Domingo Faustino Sarmiento...
(the national poem of Argentina), gained wide recognition.
Castagnino died in Buenos Aires in 1972. Following its relocation to the landmark Villa Ortiz Basualdo, the Miunicipal Museum of Art
Juan Carlos Castagnino Municipal Museum of Art
The Juan Carlos Castagnino Municipal Museum of Art is the premier museum of fine arts in Mar del Plata, Argentina.-Overview:Commissioned by the Ortíz Basualdo family of Buenos Aires, among the most prominent landowners in Argentina, the distinctive villa on Mar del Plata's prestigious Stella Maris...
in his native Mar del Plata, to which the artist had contributed over 130 works, was renamed in his honor in 1982.