Leonardo Torres-Quevedo

Author Ramón Muriedas

Santa Cruz de Iguña, Cantabria. (Bronze)

The imposing figure of Leonardo Torres-Quevedo (1852-1936) stands on a high base in the hometown of this engineer and mathematician-one of the most outstanding minds of our country. Character ahead of his time, traveler and entrepreneur, created countless inventions that marked the end of the nineteenth century and first half of the twentieth. Many of his engineering works, such as the cable car, are still not surpassed today.

Ramon Muriedas adopts to represent his countryman a formal language far removed from his usual sculptural figures – stylized and ethereal – and creates a Torres Quevedo of great physical power. That is presented to the viewer with a gesture of aplomb, strong and determined, as it should be the famous engineer in real life.

His face shows an enormous physical resemblance to the photographs that can be seen of the engineer in his mature age and in him they reflect a kind, firm character, and an intelligent gesture. The sculptor has managed to perfectly combine the realism that requires a sculpture that is born as a custom portrait with his personal style, which is appreciated in the texture of the clothing and the finishing of some areas of the piece, such as the flight of the jacket , which are worked with a loose and carefree language.