On Friday 22 November, Estudio Laterna will screen an extraordinary, previously unseen film by director Gorka Merch&aacute;n about the life of the painter Eduardo Chillida Belzunce, whose exhibition is currently on display at the gallery.&nbsp;

&lsquo;The story of how the exhibition Desde los Or&iacute;genes came to life at <a href="https://www.estudio-laterna.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Estudio Laterna</a> is one of serendipity and universal connection', explains Estudio Laterna founder <a href="https://www.lofficielibiza.com/people-of-ibiza/andrea-sanchez-landscape-designer-people-of-ibiza">Andrea Sanchez</a>. &lsquo;Introduced through mutual friends within the art world of Ibiza and San Sebasti&aacute;n, a shared sense of artistic purpose became the bridge that brought us together. We invited Chillida to visit our space one day, and what followed was an instant connection. He fell in love with the concept, the studio, and the idea of creating and exhibiting here. It felt natural&mdash;a meeting of energies that aligned effortlessly. This exhibition marks several firsts for the artist: his debut in Ibiza and the first time his abstract and figurative works are presented side by side. <a href="https://www.lofficielibiza.com/ibiza/eduardo-chillida-belzunce-at-estudio-laterna-ibiza" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Chillida</a>&rsquo;s father, a towering influence in his life, cultivated a deep connection with the creative world. Surrounded by leading artists of his time, Eduardo grew up immersed in an environment that celebrated artistic exploration. His family time in Menorca, with its idyllic Mediterranean setting, shaped his relationship with the Balearics&mdash;a place that inspired both father and son. This connection has expanded to Ibiza, where the island&rsquo;s oceanic rhythms and free-spirited energy resonate deeply with the artist&rsquo;s vision. The space reflects the union of nature, space, and a community&mdash;elements that profoundly align with <a href="https://eduardochillidabelzunce.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Chillida Belzunce</a>&rsquo;s philosophy. It is not merely a display of his work but an exploration of the shared spirit that binds art, place, and people.&rsquo;

The text below was written by the artist&rsquo;s wife Susana and explains in intimate detail the challenges and hurdles that the artist has overcome to become one of the most recognisable painters of a generation.

&ldquo;Eduardo Chillida Belzunce was born in San Sebasti&aacute;n on March 15, 1964. The son of renowned sculptor Eduardo Chillida and Pilar Belzunce, he is the youngest of a family of eight children, an equal balance of four boys and four girls.

From a very young age, Eduardo showed a strong interest in art. At the age of five, he created his first sculpture using clay given to him by his father. This small terracotta piece depicts a woman seated in a chair with her arms resting behind her head and her legs crossed. While the technical skill of the piece may not be striking, what stands out is Eduardo&rsquo;s early ability to convey the plasticity of the female form, a testament to his natural artistic vision.

Several drawings by Eduardo Chillida of his son as a child portray Eduardo always engaged in some form of creativity, whether seated or lying down, but always with a pencil and paper in hand. His early desire to "become an artist when he grew up," as he often declared, seemed to eclipse his interest in formal education.

After brief stints at the Escuela de Artes de Deba and the C&iacute;rculo de Bellas Artes in Madrid&mdash;where he had the privilege of studying under painter Antonio L&oacute;pez&mdash;as well as at the Escuela de Artes y Oficios in Madrid, Eduardo turned his focus to sculpture and later also to painting.
In his late teens, between the ages of 17 and 20, Eduardo worked with stone, alabaster, terracotta, and bronze. He spent a period in the studio of his brother Pedro, the eldest of the Chillida boys and Eduardo's godfather. Pedro had studied Philosophy and Letters and set up a studio near the family home, where the two would paint, talk, and freely explore their respective artistic paths.

In 1985, Eduardo was involved in a serious motorcycle accident that left him in a coma for a month and a half. Defying doctors' predictions, he managed to recover his speech, learn to walk again, and eventually, with great effort, return to a normal life. The accident left him partially paralyzed on one side, forcing him to become left-handed to continue painting.

In 1986, Eduardo moved to Madrid with his brother Luis, sharing a student apartment. This move was both a test and a statement, proving to himself and others that he could live independently. He continued painting during this time, though he did not return to sculpture&mdash;a part of his artistic identity that seemed to lie dormant in his mind until 2010, when he picked up sculpture once again with his left hand.

In 1987, Eduardo spent six months in New York, staying with his sister Susana. He enjoyed walking through Central Park and visiting the Metropolitan Museum of Art, which he fondly referred to as visiting &ldquo;my painter friends.&rdquo; Following his habit of painting wherever he stayed for more than a few days, Eduardo continued to paint at his sister&rsquo;s home while his brother-in-law, Eduardo Iglesias, worked on his own writing, and Susana pursued her doctoral thesis at Columbia University.

Upon his return to San Sebasti&aacute;n in 1988, Eduardo held his first solo exhibition at Galer&iacute;a Diecis&eacute;is. A year later, in 1989, he met Susana &Aacute;lvarez, a journalist working in advertising. They married in September 1991 in Amasa, a village near San Sebasti&aacute;n, and went on to have four children: Eduardo (born in 1993), Laura (1995), Pablo (1998), and Miguel (2004). They also shared a professional life, with Susana managing Eduardo&rsquo;s exhibitions and supporting him throughout his artistic career.

In 2010, Eduardo traveled to Mexico with Susana, staying with Heberto Guzm&aacute;n, who encouraged Eduardo to return to sculpture. Upon his return home, Eduardo began sculpting again, producing around twenty sculptures between 2011 and 2013. In 2015, he took a significant step forward, creating six large bronze sculptures, which were unveiled at the Louvre plaza in Paris in 2017 and 2018.

Since then, his sculptures have been exhibited in various notable locations, including the atrium of the Church of San Vicente in San Sebasti&aacute;n&mdash;the city's oldest church&mdash;and London&rsquo;s Lower Grosvenor Gardens, a charming park near Buckingham Palace.

In 2023, in a remarkable display of resilience and determination, Eduardo painted a piece with his right hand&mdash;the hand that had lost its mobility in the 1985 motorcycle accident. And in 2024, as he celebrates his 60th birthday, Eduardo plans to unveil his abstract works to the public for the first time, marking a significant shift in his artistic practice. These abstract beginnings, often concealed beneath his figurative paintings, will come to light at Estudio Laterna in Ibiza. This new phase of his work is characterized by a powerful, dreamlike quality that, like all his creations, emerges, in his father&rsquo;s words, &ldquo;from his gut.&rdquo;

In his daily life, Eduardo continues to pursue his passion for art, never losing sight of the love and connection he shares with his family and his true friends."

Photos by Maria Santos
RSVP: info@estudio-laterna.com

Director Gorka Merchán debuts Eduardo Chillida Belzunce film at Estudio Laterna.

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