Santiago of Compostela. 29/2/2012

Today the reception became official for the Cathedral of Santiago Foundation, of the commemorative sculpture of the 800 Anniversary the consecration of Cathedral of Santiago of Compostela, donated for the Corporation "Hijos de Rivera".

The sculpture, of corten steel, was realized by the Portuguese sculptor Manuel Patinha, (Povoa de Santa Iria, 1949). The piece wants to symbolize one of the twelve crosses of the consecration of the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, that could be found in the large church's ships. The Cross's stretchers have been turned over so that the figure that you represent is an 8 (eight centuries from consecration) that contains, at the same time, the two zeros that, with the 8, symbolize the eight hundred years of consecration. The sculpture is placed upon two granite stands, at a position such that the when the sun begins to illuminate the cloister at the first hours of the day, a shade forms a figure eight, that will remember for ever, the eight centuries of consecration of the Cathedral. The weight of the sculptural set surpasses the eight hundred kilogram.

The sculpture has been located at a corner of the Cathedral’s cloister, built at the beginning of the XVIth century, of Gothic renaissance style. The are three bells at the opposed corner, the Berenguela, bell molten in 1729, and replaced because of a crack.

The consecration of the Cathedral of Santiago had place in second week of Easter of the year 1211, for Compostela's bishop, Pedro Muñiz's, in presence of then Leon's King, Alfonso's IX, accompanied by his son, the infant Ferdinand, his brother Sancho and other dignitaries.

The sculpture's Act of reception, by the Cathedral of Santiago Foundation, was signed for D. José María Díaz Fernández, Deán of the Cathedral of Santiago. It was read for D. Daniel Lorenzo Santos, Director of the Cathedral of Santiago Foundation, with the presence of the creative artist of the sculpture, D. Manuel Patinha. It also assisted José María Rivera Trallero, Managing Director of the company Hijos de Rivera, and D. Fernando Hernández Rivera and D. Ramón Blanco Rajoy Rivera, Counselors of the corporation Hijos de Rivera. Representing the Santiago de Compostela town hall assisted D. Angel Currás Fernández, Culture Councillor.

At first spoke the sculptor, Manuel Patinha, about the idea of the piece and the difficulty of the realization of the spectacular sculpture. (Patinha thanked the confidence in his work and for being entrusted with such a significant piece and the symbolism that represents). He also thanked Hijos of Rivera sponsorship that they finance and they donate the piece, and to Cathedral of Santiago Foundation, to placing it in so highlighted place. Finally he show satisfied about the performed work and of the importance of this act of cession of the sculpture.


In words of D. José María Díaz Fernández, Deán of the Cathedral, "We are really in front of a great artistic creation. Located at the suitable place, at the Cloister of the Cathedral, in one corner the old bells, marked of historic resonances, and in another angle, exactly in front, precisely this giant-sized cross, because of its turned shape, remember the eight hundred anniversary. Congratulation to the author, precisely a Portuguese author settled in Galicia".

After these words, Daniel Lorenzo Santos, Director of Santiago Cathedral Foundation read the Act of reception: "The Town Council of the St. Apostólica and Metropolitan Cathedral Church Of Santiago de Compostela receives with gratitude from Hijos de Rivera the sculpture built in corten steel for the artist D. Manuel Patinha", piece that is incorporated to the Museo Catedralicio collection of works of art, and left for the posterity like testimony of the acts of celebration of the eight hundred anniversary of the consecration of Santiago Cathedral.

Manuel Patinha, Póvoa Sta Iria (Portugal) 1949.
He study at Vila Franca de Xira Industrial School, then he joined the Portuguese navy as a volunteer. He travelled by Europe, America and Africa. After suffering one hard accident Patinha comes to Spain. He lives for a while in Madrid, where he paint watercolors.

Of self-taught formation, he collaborated actively with Cruzeiro Seixas in the seventies and eighties. He is settled definitively in Narón, (Coruña), in the late eighty, from where, both in Spain and Portugal, he have won a notable prestige like painter, sculptor and engraver. His work has been exposed in Galicia and Portugal, as well as in Madrid, Barcelona, France, Italy and Brazil; And it are present at collections like the ones belonging to the Town Councils of Coruña, Narón and Lugo, Aveiro's Universities and Coruña and various museums, Orense's , Vila Franca of Xira, Coruña, Lisbon, Penafiel and Marbella.

He perform your first individual exhibition at his natal locality, Póvoa de Santa Iria in 1971. He takes part in the Spring Lounge of Estoril in 1973, and at the same city's Autumn Lounge. Since then, almost forty individual expositions and over one hundred collective, in Spain and Portugal they prove the multidisciplinar trajectory of this artist.



To the left: Commemorative plate of the donation of the sculpture "800", created for Manuel Patinha, to Santiago Cathedral Foundation, for Hijos of Rivera S.A.


To the right: Sight of the cloister of the Cathedral of Santiago, with the sculpture "800" at the bottom, in the foreground they appreciate the old bells.





Below: The old bells of Santiago Cathedral, at a corner of the Cloister of Santiago Cathedral Museum.