Aquerreta, Juan José
Juan José Aquerreta (Pamplona, 1946) commenced his artistic education in 1962 in the School of Arts and Crafts of his birth town, Pamplona, where he was taught by Gerardo Sacristán and Leocadio Muro Urriza, whilst he was also an admirer of the work of Isabel Baquedano. Four years later, a scholarship granted by the Provincial Government of Navarra allowed him to enrol at the School of Fine Arts of San Fernando, Madrid, where he was taught by Pedro Mozos, Ángel Medina, Francisco Echauz and Antonio López. After returning to Pamplona, his initial work was linked to what Moreno Glaván termed the «Pamplona School», showing considerable interest in social reality and the urban milieu, and he took part in the 1972 Pamplona Encounters. Alongside his artistic activity, from 1981 onwards he taught painting and drawing at the School of Arts and Crafts of Pamplona. Right from the start of his career, this artist created his own unique style. Aquerreta has taken part in a number of individual and group exhibitions, with particular mention of his participation in successive editions of the ARCO International Fair of Contemporary Art in Madrid. During his career, he has obtained a number of prizes, the first one being in 1967, namely the «Moreno Higueras Extraordinary Prize for Painting» at the Fine Arts School of San Fernando. This was followed by further recognitions at the Grand International Prize for Basque Painting (San Sebastián, 1967 and 1973), the Contest organised by the Caja de Ahorros of Navarra (1970), the City of Pamplona Contest (1972), the International Contemporary Art Contest organised by the Government of Navarra (1983), the 34th International Contemporary Art Prize of Monte-Carlo (2000), and the Grand Prize of HRH Prince Rainier III (2001). In 2001 he received the National Award for Plastic Arts and, in 2003, the Principe de Viana Award for Culture. His works can be found in a number of museums and public and private collections in various Spanish towns and cities, as well as in the Salvador Allende Museum in Santiago de Chile.
JJAL
Sources of information:
Conversaciones con artistas navarros: Juan José Aquerreta «Últimamente», Pamplona, Gobierno de Navarra, 2007.
