Alicia Penalba (1913-1982) | Penalba Research Center

Alicia Penalba Research

The Penalba Research Center is currently collecting information about the Argentinian sculptor Alicia Penalba (1913-1982), former pupil of French/Russian artist Ossip Zadkine (1888-1967). The Penalba Research Center provides free expertise via email for insurance or sale of your Alicia Penalba sculpture(s) or other advice such as preservation. This is completely discreet and this data is not shared with anyone outside the Penalba Research Center. Because we are always expanding our collection of works by Alicia Penalba, we are in some cases also interested in purchasing work by Penalba, and just like our expertise, always completely discreet.

Argentinian sculptress

Penalba was born in the Province of Buenos Aires in 1913 and moved to Paris in the late 1940s. Her abstract and vibrant sculptures have been shown in important museums in France, Europe and in the rest of the world. She has been commissioned many monumental works for public and private spaces.

In order to sharpen our knowledge and to enrich our archives, please share with us information you may have concerning the artist. If you do own works by Alicia Penalba, please register them here to improve the database of her oeuvre.

Alicia Penalba Biography

Alicia Rosario Pérez Penalba was born on August 9th, 1913 in San Pedro, in the province of Buenos Aires, where she lived with her family for two years. Her parents were both Spaniards (Santiago Pérez and Remedios Penalba). Her father, worked for Ferrocariles Argentinos, the reason that led the family to itinerate among various cities in Cuyo region, Patagonia and Chile. The impressive and contrasting nature of that area will later greatly impact her sculptural work.

Alicia Penalba (1913–1982) was a remarkable Argentine sculptor known for her bold, organic abstractions that bridged modernist traditions with a deeply personal, expressive form language. Her work gained international recognition, especially in Europe, where she spent much of her artistic career. Penalba initially worked with figurative styles, but by the early-1950s, she had fully embraced abstract expression in sculpture. She is best known for her monumental vertical works in bronze or stone, often inspired by nature, totemic forms, and organic growth.