Chema Madoz
Chema Madoz
(Madrid, 1958), renowned Spanish photographer who was awarded the National Photography Prize in 2000. He has had numerous individual exhibitions, both in Spain and abroad, and his surrealist works in black and white stand out. His work collects images taken from skillful games of imagination, in which perspectives and textures weave his images.
Between 1980 and 1983 he studied Art History at the Complutense University of Madrid, which he simultaneously studied with photography at the Image Teaching Center. The Royal Photographic Society of Madrid exhibited the first individual exhibition of the author in 1985. In 1988 the Sala Minerva of the Círculo de Bellas Artes (Madrid) inaugurated its photography program with an exhibition of his works. Two years later, in 1990, he began to develop the concept of objects, a constant theme in his photography to date. In 1991, the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía shows the exhibition "Four directions: contemporary Spanish photography" that will tour several countries. Some photographs of Madoz are part of this exhibition. That same year he received the Kodak Prize. In 1993 he received the Artistic Creation Exchange from the Banesto Cultural Foundation.
The Editorial Art-Plus of Madrid published its first monograph in 1995: the book Chema Madoz (1985 - 1995). Three years later it is the Editorial Mestizo, A. C., of Murcia that publishes a volume to the artist, the book entitled Mixtos - Chema Madoz.
In 1999 the Galician Center of Contemporary Art of Santiago de Compostela shows the individual exhibition of works made between 1996 and 1997. At the end of that year, the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía dedicates the individual exhibition "Objetos 1990 - 1999", which is configured as the first retrospective exhibition that this museum dedicates to a Spanish photographer in life.
In 2000, the Madrid photographer received the National Photography Prize of Spain. That same year, the Houston Fotofest Biennial recognized him as "Outstanding Author". His work goes beyond our borders reaching not only the North American city but also the Chateau d'Eau de Toulouse (France). That year he received the Higashikawa Award in Japan.