Borges thought that true literary genius lay in the task of reading and that one should boast more about one’s own readings than about the writings produced. At visual arts We could apply a similar criterion to them and consider the ability to understand a work, detect a new talent or disseminate important artists as notable as the ability to create a valuable painting, performance or sculpture.
The Board of Directors of the ARTEBA Foundation had these qualities in mind when handing over Eduardo Costantini a few days ago; for the first time, a distinction that will be annual from now on: the Collector’s Award.
“The passion of Eduardo F. Costantini for contemporary art and his commitment to the development of Argentine art deserve to be celebrated,” he said. Larisa Andreani, president of the ARTEBA Foundation, when presenting him with the award. Among the reasons for the distinction, the organization highlighted the crucial value of collectors in stimulating artistic activity and the contribution that private collections make to the preservation of heritage for future generations. In a country as fickle as Argentina, these qualities become fundamental.
The reasons
And it is no coincidence that the first ARTEBA winner is the man who knew how to put together one of the most wonderful art collections in the country and not only that; He also had the gesture of making it available to the community in a museum, Malba, which is already an essential part of the culture of Argentines.
“Museums have become secular temples, refuges of the soul. “Art transcends times of crisis and is a refuge, not only economic but also spiritual and emotional,” Costantini told us when we asked him what art meant at such a complex time in the country.
Pages and pages have been written in the last two decades about the role of the private sector in Argentine artistic activity. The Museum of Latin American Art of Buenos Aires Not only is it a reference institution in terms of art on the continent, it also exhibits excellent exhibitions every year, it is a very high-level study center, it hosts exquisite film exhibitions and maintains a sustained training activity in the field. of literature. And while this exceeds Costantini’s collecting, without his passion for art, everything else would not have happened.
The jewels in his collection are known to everyone: “Diego and I” by Frida Kahlo“Dance in Tehuantepec” by Diego Rivera“Omi Obini” by Wifredo Lam, “Urso” by Vicente do Rego Monteiro, “Pudor” and “Banjo Player” by Victor Brecheret, among many other works by Argentine artists such as Emilio Pettorutti, Xul Solar, Antonio Berni, León Ferrari, Jorge de la Vega and Lucio Fontana . To increase it, in this edition of ARTEBA, Costantini acquired two watercolors by La Chola Poblete, two works by Gyula Kosice and a sculpture by María Simón.
When, after receiving the award, we asked him what work he dreamed of adding to his collection, he kept it a mystery: “There are many pieces that I would like to have, even those not yet known, which I will discover on my exciting path as a collector.”
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