Exploring the intrinsic qualities of stone through direct carving lies at the core of Walter Pugliese’s artistic practice. His method favors an intimate dialogue between the material and the artist. "The stone resists, rebels, sometimes it is indulgent—like life," evokes Pugliese, paraphrasing Michelangelo, emphasizing the tension and complicity that emerge during his sculptural practice.
At the heart of his work is the use of traditional hand tools, without resorting to electric machinery, allowing for a slow and reflective process. Through this method of direct carving, Pugliese uncovers the latent form within blocks of marble, stone, or alabaster, combining sculpture with drawing as a fundamental step to build a solid inner structure that is later revealed in the final volume. His practice balances technical rigor with expressive freedom, resulting in solid volumes and lively surfaces, where line, shadow, and void engage in a rhythm of their own.
Based in Martínez, Buenos Aires Province, Pugliese has directed his workshop El Portón Verde since 2011, where he also teaches stone sculpture and life drawing. Between 2013 and 2021, he led seminars and courses at the Asociación Estímulo de Bellas Artes in Buenos Aires, and since 2019 he has collaborated with the University Extension Program of the Law Faculty at the University of Buenos Aires (UBA). He is also the editor of Avignon Arte, through which he promotes new readings and perspectives on contemporary creation.
His work has been featured in numerous group exhibitions at key venues in the Argentine art scene: the Asociación Estímulo de Bellas Artes, the Museum of Latin American Contemporary Art in La Plata, and the Salón de los Pasos Perdidos at the UBA Law Faculty. In September 2017, he participated in the exhibition "La Orilla que se Abisma" in Avellaneda, and in April 2021, he presented "Cuarteto en Piedra" at the Buenos Aires Legislature alongside Marisa Perrone, María Emilia Padilla, and Lucas Videla. Most recently, on November 8, 2024, he exhibited his stone sculptures and those of his students during Buenos Aires’ Night of the Museums.
Throughout his career, Pugliese has received recognitions that attest to the quality of his sculptural work, including two Honorable Mentions at the “Mauricio Algieri Prize” Sculpture Salons organized by San Isidro in 2011 and 2012. His body of work, born from a constant encounter with the resistance and generosity of stone, establishes Walter Pugliese as a singular voice within contemporary Argentine sculpture.
