The Spanish artist Eduardo Arroyo, born in 1937, is one of the most renowned representatives of “Figurative Realism” in the international art scene. His diverse artistic oeuvre ranges from fine art and stage design to literature and is documented in numerous international exhibitions: Documenta (1978); Centre Pompidou, Paris (1982); Guggenheim Museum, New York (1984); Museo Espanol de Arte Contemporáneo, Madrid (1984); Venice Biennale (1995); Centro de Arte Reina Sofia, Madrid (1998); the touring exhibition “Arte español para el extranjero”, Museum Ludwig, Budapest, Muzeul National de Arta al Romaniei, Bucharest, the Spanish embassy, Saint Petersburg, Musée National d`Histoire et d`Art, Luxembuorg (2003/04); Institut Valencien d`Art Moderne (IVAM), Valencia (2008); Es Baluard Museu d`Art Modern i Comtemporani de Palma (2011).

At the beginning of his career in the sixties, Arroyo advocated the critical and political function of art and provoked people with his spectacular, ironic polemics against the former protagonists of “l’art pour l’art”. He resisted the Franco regime and subsequently spent years in exile in Paris and was only able to return to his home country following Franco’s death.
In addition to his interest in themes such as metropolises, foreignness and exile, Arroyo, who as a boxing enthusiast collects documents and artistic evidence of boxing, has also made this sport a theme of his work. He has expressed the myth of the boxer as a tragic hero many times in both a visual and literary manner. He has produced picture cycles, has written a biography about the boxing star and friend of Cocteau in the 1920s, “Panama – El Brown” and also the play “Bantam”. An encounter with Karl Michael Grüber in 1968 led to a long-term fruitful collaboration. Arroyo worked as a set designer for the director’s highly-respected productions (including Wozzek (1971), Off limits (1972), Dickicht der Städte (1973), Antikenprojekt: die Bakchen (1974) and Faust (1975)) for major institutions in Europe (Schaubühne, Berlin; Piccolo Theatro, Milan; Paris Opera; Salzburg Festival). At the end of 2011 an art guide written by Eduardo Arroyo about the Prado in Madrid was published. Furthermore, after Francis Bacon and Cy Twombly, in July 2012 Arroyo, will be honoured with an exhibition at the Prado Museum.