Santiago Serrano

A self-taught artist, he broadened his experience in Paris in 1968 and qualified as a painting conservator at the Instituto Central de Restauración de Obras de Arte (ICROA), where he studied between 1968 and 1971. In 1971 he held solo exhibitions at Amadís, Madrid, and Snob, Buenos Aires. In 1981 he exhibited at the Museo Español de Arte Contemporáneo in Madrid.

From his early abstract investigations onwards, Serrano has reconsidered the relationship between image and support. Crosses, arches, circular forms and structures incorporating wood or iron recur in his work. Series including Pan de cal, Instrumentos de Pasión, Orillas, Silenciarios y Quimeras and Días de acero y rosa trace a practice in which painting moves towards the object and surrounding space while retaining its connection with the picture plane.

Printmaking forms a distinct strand of his research. In 1996 he received the Premio Nacional de Grabado. His practice combines traditional printmaking processes with digital printing and artist’s books. In 2014 he donated prints, books and facsimiles to the University of Cantabria; the following year, the university presented Arte Gráfico Digital (1997–2014) at its Paraninfo in Santander.

The Museo Reina Sofía holds works from different stages of his career, including Tríptico Propac (1976), Abanderado III (1995–1996), Encrucijada II and Tambor de la noche (boceto). The first two entered the collection in 2001. The Helga de Alvear collection also includes works from series such as Pan de cal and Orillas. His practice has extended to teaching, particularly at the Faculty of Fine Arts of the University of Salamanca.

At Marquesa Gallery he presented Geometrías del Silencio (2024), curated by Mariano Navarro, and Ahuecar: 50 años de pintura (2025), curated by Mariana Rey. Both exhibitions place recent work in dialogue with his wider painting practice. He is a corresponding member in Painting for Toledo of the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando; he received his diploma at the meeting held on May 11, 2026.