Albacete, October 6, 2026 - The Government of Castilla-La Mancha is commemorating the centenary of the birth of the sculptor from Almansa, José Luis Sánchez, with the exhibition titled 'La niña sentada. José Luis Sánchez. Sculptor (From Figuration to Abstraction)'. This exhibition was unveiled on Tuesday at the Museum of Albacete and will be open for public viewing until January 17, 2027.
Carmen Teresa Olmedo, the Deputy Minister of Culture and Sports, visited the exhibition and emphasized the importance of bringing the trajectory and legacy of José Luis Sánchez closer to the public. Sánchez is regarded as one of the most prominent figures in contemporary Spanish sculpture and played a significant role in the introduction and consolidation of abstraction in Spain.
The centerpiece of the exhibition is 'La niña sentada', one of Sánchez's most emblematic works, created in 1954 in his studio at Ciudad Universitaria in Madrid. This sculpture, which belongs to the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, won a bronze medal at the National Exhibition of Fine Arts that same year and served as a model for other seated figures created by the artist during the 1950s.
The exhibition features 13 sculptures, along with sketches, notebooks, watercolors, photographs, and books, providing a comprehensive overview of the different stages of the sculptor's career. These include his formative years in Almansa, his time in Madrid, and his participation in the 1964 New York World's Fair, leading up to his growing interest in abstraction from the 1960s onward.
This initiative has been organized in collaboration with several institutions, including the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, the Public Library of the State in Albacete, the Spanish Film Archive, and the Ateneo de Madrid, as well as the collection of Paloma Canivet. The project is jointly organized by the Junta de Comunidades de Castilla-La Mancha and the Diputación de Albacete.
