Rebeca Matte Bello (; October 29, 1875 – May 15, 1929) was a Chilean sculptor. Her sculptures are in the collection of the

Chilean National Museum of Fine Arts The Chilean National Museum of Fine Arts ( or ), located in Santiago, Chile, is one of the major centers for Chilean art and for broader South American art. Established in 1880 (making it the oldest in South America), the organization is manage ...

, including her sculpture ''Icarus and Daedalus,'' which resides outside the museum.

Early life and education

Rebeca Matte, born October 29, 1875, in

Santiago, Chile Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Regi ...

, (In Spanish) was the only daughter of Rebecca Reyes and

Augusto Matte Augusto is an Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish given name or surname. Derived from Augustus, meaning in Latin "majestic," "the increaser," or "venerable", it is notable as being the name of the first emperor of Ancient Rome. The Greek translation ...

, an ambassador for Chile. While living in Santiago, she was educated by her grandmother. Matte was exposed to many intellectuals of Chile at the time, including

José Victorino Lastarria José Victorino Lastarria (; 23 March 1817 – 14 June 1888) was a Chilean writer, legislative deputy, senator, diplomat, and finance minister. Early life José Victorino Lastarria was the son of Francisco Lastarria y Cortés and Carmen Santander ...

, Gabriel Jordan Amunátegui, and

Alberto Blest Gana Alberto Blest Gana (; June 14, 1830 – November 8, 1920) was a Chilean novelist and diplomat, considered the father of Chilean novel. Blest Gana was of Irish and Basque descent. Biography He was born in Santiago, the son of an Irishman, ...

. Her father would move to Paris and Matte would be educated in Europe. In Europe, she first studied in Rome, under Giulio Monteverde. In Paris, she studied at the

Académie Julian The () was a private art school for painting and sculpture founded in Paris, France, in 1867 by French painter and teacher Rodolphe Julian (1839–1907). The school was active from 1868 through 1968. It remained famous for the number and qual ...

under Paul Dubois and

Denys Puech Denys Puech (3 December 1854, Gavernac, Bozouls, Aveyron – December 1942, Rodez, Aveyron) was a French sculptor. Biography From a family of farmers (his brother was Louis Puech, Député for the Seine Department from 1898 to 1932, and Min ...

. As a young artist, she found influence in the work of

Auguste Rodin François Auguste René Rodin (; ; 12 November 184017 November 1917) was a French sculptor generally considered the founder of modern sculpture. He was schooled traditionally and took a craftsman-like approach to his work. Rodin possessed a u ...

. She would marry diplomat Pedro Felipe Larrain Iñíguez, and she would give birth to their daughter, Lily Iñíguez Matte. Lily would die in 1926, this grief causing Matte not to sculpt anymore.

Career

In 1899, she displayed a statue entitled "Horace" at the

Salon Salon may refer to: Common meanings * Beauty salon A beauty salon or beauty parlor is an establishment that provides Cosmetics, cosmetic treatments for people. Other variations of this type of business include hair salons, spas, day spas, ...

in Paris, a work showing the physical and psychological rigidity associated with an epileptic seizure. In 1908, the Chilean government commissioned her to design a sculpture for the

International Court of Justice The International Court of Justice (ICJ; , CIJ), or colloquially the World Court, is the only international court that Adjudication, adjudicates general disputes between nations, and gives advisory opinions on International law, internation ...

The Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...

. Bello displayed two works at the 1913 Salon d'Automne. The first, "full of allure and vigor", is a bust of an older wrestler shown "defying the harshness of life". The second work, which was said to be one of the nicer works in the ''Salon'', was called "A Life"; it was a representation of a beautiful, mature woman sitting on a stone sphinx, looking backwards.

Le Figaro () is a French daily morning newspaper founded in 1826. It was named after Figaro, a character in several plays by polymath Pierre Beaumarchais, Beaumarchais (1732–1799): ''Le Barbier de Séville'', ''The Guilty Mother, La Mère coupable'', ...

describes the artist as a fine talent from the young Latin American school of art and noted her ease and control over the execution of these works. It notes that she studied under

and a Monsieur Dubois. The piece commissioned for the

was installed in 1914; it was called ''The War''. The Chilean government continued to commission works from Matte and in 1914 she created ''Heroes de la Concepción'', located in Santiago. Matte became a teacher at the

Accademia di Belle Arti Firenze The Accademia di Belle Arti di Firenze () is an instructional art academy in Florence, in Tuscany, in central Italy. It was founded by Cosimo I de' Medici in 1563, under the influence of Giorgio Vasari. Michelangelo, Benvenuto Cellini and ...

in 1918.

Later life and death

Rebeca-Matte-Spectre de la Guerre-15042014-4

Matte's daughter, Lily, would be diagnosed with

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...

and would die in a

sanatorium A sanatorium (from Latin '' sānāre'' 'to heal'), also sanitarium or sanitorium, is a historic name for a specialised hospital for the treatment of specific diseases, related ailments, and convalescence. Sanatoriums are often in a health ...

in the

Swiss Alps The Alps, Alpine region of Switzerland, conventionally referred to as the Swiss Alps, represents a major natural feature of the country and is, along with the Swiss Plateau and the Swiss portion of the Jura Mountains, one of its three main Physica ...

in 1926. Matte would become depressed over Lily's death, and would cease creating art, focusing on charity work on behalf of her daughter. Matte died, in Paris, on May 14, 1929. In 1929, after her death, her husband donated ''Icarus and Daedalus'' to the

. The piece, a copy of the original which was commissioned by the government of Chile as a gift to the country of

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

and is on public display in

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...

, was placed outside of the museum in 1930. An award, named after Matte, was created in 1922 by the

Chilean Ministry of Education The Ministry of Education (, MINEDUC) is the Ministry of State responsible for promoting the development of education at all levels, to assure all people access to basic education, to stimulate scientific and technological research and artistic c ...

for notable Chilean sculptors.

Notable works

*''Santa Teresa'', Paris, 1907 sculpture. *''Unidos en la gloria y en la muerte'' (Ícaro y Dédalo), 1922, Bronze, 200 cm de alto, Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes, Chile. *''Horacio'', marble, 200 cm de alto,

. *''El eco'', marble, 142 cm de alto, Chilean National Museum of Fine Arts *''Crudo invierno'', 1912, bronze, 60 cm de alto, Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes, Chile. *''Militza'', marble, 155 cm de alto, Museo de Arte y Artesanía de Linares, Chile. *''La guerra'', commissioned 1908, installed 1914,

Peace Palace The Peace Palace ( ; ) is an international law administrative building in The Hague, Netherlands. It houses the International Court of Justice (which is the principal judicial body of the United Nations), the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PC ...

garden, The Hague, The Netherlands (a gift from the Chilean government to the Peace Palace) *''Tristeza'', marble, Galería Pitti, Florence, Italie. *''Homenaje a los héroes de la Concepción'', 1920, bronze, Avda. Libertador Bernardo O'Higgins, Santiago, Chile. *''Los aviadores'', 1923, bronze, Plaza Mauá, Río de Janeiro, Brasil. *''Icarus and Daedalus'', 1922, Chilean National Museum of Fine Arts. *''Ulises y Calipso'', 1925, marble, Hall del Club de La Unión, Santiago, Chile. *''Mi hija'', marble, Cemetery Général, Santiago, Chile. *''Dolor'', marbre, Cemetery Général, Santiago, Chile. *''Militza, on loan to Musée des Arts et Métiers de Linares, Chile.''

Bibliography

* (es) Isabel Cruz de Amenabar, ''Rebeca Matte Bello : 1875–1929'', Origo, 2008. * (es) Isabel Cruz de Amenabar, ''Manos de mujer : Rebeca Matte Bello y su época, 1875–1929'', Origo, 2008. * (es) Ana María Larraín, ''Rebecca Matte, escultora del dolor'', Zig-Zag, 1994.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Matte Bello, Rebeca 1875 births 1929 deaths Bello family 19th-century Chilean women artists 20th-century Chilean women artists 19th-century sculptors 20th-century sculptors Académie Julian alumni Sculptors from Paris Artists from Santiago, Chile Chilean women sculptors Chilean expatriates in Italy Chilean expatriates in France