The sculptor Quico Torres (1963), from the town of Benissa in Alicante, is currently exhibiting his latest work in the Casa del Cable in Jávea as part of the ‘Esculturas mirando al mar’ exhibition, or ‘Sea-facing sculptures’. With a long career behind him, Torres originally began working with wood, winning his first prestigious award in 1986. He then moved to Valencia to study at the School of Applied Arts and Artistic Crafts, in the meantime working as a sculptor from his small studio in Godella. Whilst in Valencia, Quico Torres’ pieces were exhibited in some of Valencia’s most famous galleries including Val i 20, Punto and Nave. Through activities run by the Valencian Institute of Modern Art (IVAM), Torres’ work achieved international recognition.
In the early 90s Torres returned to his native Benissa, balancing studio work with his job as a visual arts teacher in the town. Since 1992, his work has been exhibited in several towns, such as Gandía, Jávea, Onteniente, Alicante and Valencia, as part of a collection, as well as individual pieces.
In 1998 and 1999, Torres took inspiration from his trips to Paris and Italy, later combining the use of iron with stone in his work. In 2001 his first retrospective was presented in the Casa Capellà Pallarés de Sagunto, to encompass pieces in stone and iron, together with works of art in wood and experimental designs in cement. This retrospective was continued five years later in Benidorm under the title ‘Escultures. Un Passat, un present’, ‘Sculptures. Past and Present’, and then two years later in 2008, in a new retrospective displayed in Benissa, entitled ’25 anys d’art’, ’25 years of art’.
