Mariano Benlliure was born in 1884 and had a studio in Rome for over twenty years. He there cast his sculpture Accidenti!, which won the second prize at the National Exhibition of Fine Arts. His career was unstoppable from then on. His talent as a sculptor earned him countless public and private commissions throughout his life and he also held several senior posts related to the arts in the Spanish government.
Benlliure worked in a great variety of sizes and materials. He worked constantly to expand his knowledge of casting and ceramic techniques and was a master in both disciplines. He made many public monuments, where he introduced innovations to the design of the plinths and bringing great originality to his compositions. Many of his pieces have now become landmarks in their host cities. In Spain, Madrid alone boasts more than a dozen of his works, including the monuments to Francisco de Goya (1902) and General Martínez Campos (1907). Examples of his work can also be found in Valencia, Cordoba, Malaga, Granada, Bilbao and other cities. His sculptures also grace nearly all the national capitals of Latin America.
Benlliure introduced some unique innovations to the design of funerary monuments and some of his works in this field became true paradigms of the genre. Examples include the tomb of the tenor Gayarre in Roncal (1901), the mausoleum to Sagasta (1904) in the Pantheon of Illustrious Men (now the Pantheon of Spain), the Moroder family vault (1907-1910) in Valencia and the tomb of Joselito 'el Gallo' (1926) in the cemetery at Seville.
He was a highly gifted portrait artist, producing scores of outstanding busts of leading figures (inter alia Bauer, Sagasta, Alfonso XIII and Victoria Eugenie, Cléo de Mérode, the Duke of Alba, Joaquín Sorolla and the Count of Romanones). He also excelled at medal-making and in themes as diverse as bullfighting, childhood, folk culture (his portraits of dancers such as Pastora Imperio are particularly significant), religion, etc.
Marian Benlliure received numerous awards, including the Grand Prix at the Universal Exposition in Paris in 1900 in recognition of his excellence as a sculptor, his tireless capacity for work and his prolific and versatile output. His long career placed him at the pinnacle of turn-of-the-century Spanish sculpture.
Mariano Benlliure was born in 1884 and had a studio in Rome for over twenty years. He there cast his sculpture Accidenti!, which won the second prize at the National Exhibition of Fine Arts. His career was unstoppable from then on. His talent as a sculptor earned him countless public and private commissions throughout his life and he also held several senior posts related to the arts in the Spanish government.
Benlliure worked in a great variety of sizes and materials. He worked constantly to expand his knowledge of casting and ceramic techniques and was a master in both disciplines. He made many public monuments, where he introduced innovations to the design of the plinths and bringing great originality to his compositions. Many of his pieces have now become landmarks in their host cities. In Spain, Madrid alone boasts more than a dozen of his works, including the monuments to Francisco de Goya (1902) and General Martínez Campos (1907). Examples of his work can also be found in Valencia, Cordoba, Malaga, Granada, Bilbao and other cities. His sculptures also grace nearly all the national capitals of Latin America.
Benlliure introduced some unique innovations to the design of funerary monuments and some of his works in this field became true paradigms of the genre. Examples include the tomb of the tenor Gayarre in Roncal (1901), the mausoleum to Sagasta (1904) in the Pantheon of Illustrious Men (now the Pantheon of Spain), the Moroder family vault (1907-1910) in Valencia and the tomb of Joselito 'el Gallo' (1926) in the cemetery at Seville.
He was a highly gifted portrait artist, producing scores of outstanding busts of leading figures (inter alia Bauer, Sagasta, Alfonso XIII and Victoria Eugenie, Cléo de Mérode, the Duke of Alba, Joaquín Sorolla and the Count of Romanones). He also excelled at medal-making and in themes as diverse as bullfighting, childhood, folk culture (his portraits of dancers such as Pastora Imperio are particularly significant), religion, etc.
Marian Benlliure received numerous awards, including the Grand Prix at the Universal Exposition in Paris in 1900 in recognition of his excellence as a sculptor, his tireless capacity for work and his prolific and versatile output. His long career placed him at the pinnacle of turn-of-the-century Spanish sculpture.