The sculptor from Avila, who has two other works in Águilas, dies at his home in Madrid at the age of 97 due to respiratory failure
The sculptor Santiago de Santiago (Navaescurial, Ávila, 1925) died this Saturday at the age of 97 at his home in Fuente del Berro, in Madrid, the family reports to Europa Press. Self-taught, Santiago de Santiago began his artistic career when he was very young, in the middle of the last century, reaching “recognized prestige” in the 1960s and 1970s, a period in which he regularly presented his work in numerous exhibitions and collectives, both in Spain and abroad.
Santiago de Santiago’s work is linked to the region of Murcia and especially to Águilas, where three of his works are exhibited outdoors. The most famous is the life-size bronze statue of the actor from Aguila, Francisco Rabal, located in the mining area of Cuesta de Gos, the birthplace of the unforgettable interpreter, next to the hermitage of the district and under an almond tree. The piece, sculpted shortly after the actor’s death in 2001, was donated to the municipality by Aquila banker Alfonso Escámez, former president of the Central Bank and friend of the sculptor.
In Águilas you can also enjoy, in a discreet but charming garden overlooking the Levante promenade, ‘La mujer aguileña’, a double piece in which a female figure (a mother, a teacher?) leads protectively by the hand towards a child.
The third work of Santiago de Santiago in Águilas, installed in 2005 in the Plaza de España, in front of the Town Hall, is a bust of King Carlos III, one of the architects of the urban planning of this urban model in his time – together with the Count of Floridablanca and Antonio Robles-Vives Alarcón, Minister of the Council of Finance in 1779 and Superintendent of the Royal Works of Lorca. Despite his close ties to Águilas, his first ‘Murcian’ sculpture was made a few years earlier, in 1998, when he sculpted the bust of María José Besora in bronze after her victory in the Miss Spain pageant.
The artist, which is why he is best known, made busts of many personalities from the world of culture and entertainment. He always proudly wore the distinction of modeling for members of the royal family, who posed for him at various points in his life. In fact, according to the same family sources, King Felipe VI did it for the first time when he was barely two years old. In addition, he is the author of numerous monuments throughout the country and many others abroad, such as Greece, Bratislava, Chile and Argentina. He maintained a special relationship with Mexico and Japan, where his works garnered great admiration.
In Madrid, the city where he spent most of his life, several of his sculptures are exhibited. Perhaps the most emblematic is the one dedicated to ‘La Violetera’, which can be seen in the gardens of Las Vistillas. And in his hometown, Navaescurial, his art reigns over some of the most beautiful places in the Sierra Avila.
Source: La Verdad
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