Calling all artists, brushes at the ready. Aspe has just unveiled the rules for its 27th Pastor Calpena National Painting Award, and there’s €10,000 up for grabs.
The prize money will be split four ways: €4,000 for first place, €3,000 for second, €2,000 for third, and €1,000 for fourth. At least one of those prizes is guaranteed to go to a watercolour, so wash those paintbrushes and get the paper ready.
Aspe Art Painting Competition: Rules and regs
There are a few other ground rules too. No artist can scoop more than one prize, and at least one winner must be an Aspe resident or born in the town.
Entries can be handed in at the Wagner Theatre on 14, 15, 16 and 17 October. The winners will be announced on 26 October at the same venue. Afterwards, the winning works, plus a carefully chosen selection of others, will go on display. The exhibition at the José Terol gallery at the Wagner Theatre will run from 26 October to 6 November.
The Wagner Theatre is located at Calle Castelar, 10, 03680.
The award, named after celebrated painter Pastor Calpena, is a big moment on the local cultural calendar. It is a chance for both newcomers and seasoned artists to show off their best work to a jury of art world heavyweights.
All the rules can be found on Aspe’s Town Hall website. For other queries, send an email to cultura@aspe.es.
Pastor Calpena
Vicente Pastor Calpena made his name as one of Spain’s great masters of watercolour. He built a reputation that stretched far beyond his hometown of Aspe, Alicante, where he was born in 1918.
His career carried him across Latin America, the United States and France, with exhibitions and awards.
He studied in Madrid during the years of the Republic, honing the craft that would define his life’s work. Colleagues often spoke of him with deep respect, recognising his place among Spain’s finest watercolourists.
Pastor Calpena’s story came to a close in 1993 in Madrid, where he passed away while preparing for a new show at the Sokoa gallery. The exhibition went ahead as a tribute.
