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Now in his late 80s, Antonio Lopez Garcia has created paintings, drawings,
and sculptures of meticulously observed landscapes, interiors, and portraits
for decades. In The Apparition of Little Brother the artist embraces a surreal
quality, contrasting the weighty bronze medium and the weightless child, as
well as the realistic perspective and unearthly situation depicted. Recalling
Renaissance scenes of the Annunciation of Mary, where Mary received
news she would become pregnant with Jesus, the narrative here is more
ambiguous. Its everyday nature is underscored by the watering can and cat
lazing in the foreground. The artist once said that "Most of my work comes
about because something bursts into my life that moves me," and this was
certainly the case for Head of Carmen (Carmen Sleeping) which is a portrait
of his adored granddaughter as a baby. It is a much more intimate version of
a similar large-scale sculpture by the artist that sits outside the Museum's
Fenway entrance.
Thumbnail-size images of copyrighted artworks are displayed under fair use, in accordance with guidelines recommended by the Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for the Visual Arts, published by the College Art Association in February 2015.
Head of Carmen (Carmen Sleeping)
Antonio López García (Spanish, born in 1936)
1999–2000
Medium/Technique
Lead
Dimensions
Height x width x depth: 5 7/8 × 5 1/2 × 6 5/16 in. (15 × 14 × 16 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of the artist in honor of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston staff who respectfully and professionally organized the exhibition, Antonio López García, April 12–July 27, 2008
Accession Number2008.656
CollectionsEurope, Contemporary Art
ClassificationsSculpture
Now in his late 80s, Antonio Lopez Garcia has created paintings, drawings,
and sculptures of meticulously observed landscapes, interiors, and portraits
for decades. In The Apparition of Little Brother the artist embraces a surreal
quality, contrasting the weighty bronze medium and the weightless child, as
well as the realistic perspective and unearthly situation depicted. Recalling
Renaissance scenes of the Annunciation of Mary, where Mary received
news she would become pregnant with Jesus, the narrative here is more
ambiguous. Its everyday nature is underscored by the watering can and cat
lazing in the foreground. The artist once said that "Most of my work comes
about because something bursts into my life that moves me," and this was
certainly the case for Head of Carmen (Carmen Sleeping) which is a portrait
of his adored granddaughter as a baby. It is a much more intimate version of
a similar large-scale sculpture by the artist that sits outside the Museum's
Fenway entrance.
ProvenanceThe Artist, gift of the artist to the MFA. (Accession Date: September 17, 2008)
Copyright© 2022 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / VEGAP, Madrid