[Javier]

"Las Costus": Artists from the "Movida Madrileña"

Well, I was searching on this enciclopedia about "Las Costus", and I did not find anything. For this, I searched on the net and paste the information here, so that the Editors could write an article for glbtq about "Las Costus".


From: http://www.picassomio.com/EnriqueCostus/en/ (Spanish)

Enrique Costus was born in Cadiz, in 1953. He was born Enrique Naya but he changed his name to Costus, together with his partner, Juan Carrero.

The story of this tragic couple started in 1975, when they decided to leave Cadiz and move to Madrid, where they found the freedom that was denied them by a small city.

The artistic activities of the two can only be understood in the context of the passionate love story that was their life for 15 years.

Authentic pillars of the famous bohemian movement known as Movida Madrileña, typified by such artists as these two, the filmmaker, Pedro Almadovar, etc., Enrique died a victim of AIDS, in the spring of 1989, and a month later Juan committed suicide.



From: http://www.iespana.es/NUEVAOLADELOS80/costus.htm (Spanish)

The history of this couple begins in 1975, when they decide to leave Cadiz and they arrive at Madrid, where find the freedom that refused to them in a small city.

The artistic activity of both cannot be understood without the exciting and tragic history of love that lived throughout 15 years.

Juan Costus (Juan Carrero) was born in Palma de Mallorca in 1955 and Enrique Costus (Enrique Naya) was born in Cadiz in 1953.

The legend says that they nicknamed Costus -affectionate diminutive of "costureras", (female) dressmakers- because they sewed cushions and fabrics in its legendary house of the street of Palm, in the heat of heart of the Madrilenian district of Malasaña, in number 14.

Between the walls of that house, they late passed each Fabio McNamara, Almodóvar, Alaska, Bernardine Bonezzi, Dove chamorro, authentic pillars of the sociocultural movement, known like "Movida Madrileña".

They were dedicated to the painting, and they made multitude of exhibitions in Madrid, mainly in the Gallery Sen. They painted often to its friends, even they themselves also were reflected in the linen cloth.

The first exhibition of Costus was inaugurated in autumn of 1981. "Illustrated Chochonismo" was called, was the pleasure by the pleasure, to which they were also dedicated for example, Almodóvar & McNamara. His first work was exposed in the gallery of another pillar of the moved one, Fernando Vijande, in its "Vijande Gallery".

Their restlessness went beyond the pictorial art, also felt attracted by the letters, doing scripts, by the imitation jewellery, the seam, etc.

Enrique died, victim of AIDS, in the spring of 1989, and a month later, Juan committed suicide.

Still they follow presents not only in the memory, but to the eyes of much people, because their pictures are exposed in some Galleries, like the Sen of Madrid.



From: http://canales.elcorreodigital.com/evasion/tendencias/t150202costus.html (Spanish)

The Costus, the pair of painters "La Movida" who shared the those crazy and vivifying years of creative fertility with Alaska, Almodóvar, Perez-Mínguez, McNamara and all that tribe of artists who injected a little light in the faded and insipid posfranquista world.

The Costus -or "Las Costus", as their friends called to them- they were a pair of painters gays, whose Madrilenian floor became something as well as the seat of "La Movida". Its preference by the color and reinterpretar national symbols turned vampires of the customs and the?santos national symbols to them, wrists dressed flamencas? of that they were nourished later to regurgitate them in his pictures, plenty of color, critic and frivolous desperation.

Thus, Enrique and Juan Costus - in fact named Naya and Carrero, respectively- they were elevated like the official painters of that atmosphere underground and, with its small dog Lala Costus -one more of the family-, that stage of "colocones" and art lived to the end that produces between the lovers of the alternative a deep feeling of nostalgia and orphanhood, since good part of their representatives has died or has been absorbed by the commercial spiral. Now, for those who long for or that have not had opportunity to know their work, the Sen Gallery of Madrid has been welcoming a retrospective one of its work, first for ten years.

Frenzy of mourning Between the pictures which they can be seen in the sample, that takes the generic title of "The Valley of the Fallen" ones, include works like "The Christ of the Mercy", "San Gabriel, Loreto: Mistress of the Air Force", "Carmen: Misstres of Navy", "Mother country" or "Chapel of the Tomb: Yacente Christ". The peculiarity: all the works, that have these so serious names and make reference to different escultoric groups from the Madrilenian monument, reflect the own faces of the Costus or its friends. For example, Alaska appears like a Pietá, a little punk, that yes, maintaining in arms to one of the painters, who lie dead in the middle of a color spiral. A vision of the not at all orthodox place, like everything what they did.

But nothing lasts for always. After fifteen years of life in pair, prolífica production and I release the brakes artistic and existencial, Enrique died of AIDS in Sitges during the spring of 1989. Wine and roses days were finished, and "La Movida", registered the frenzy multicolor, got dressed mourning. Of the famous pair only it was left Juan, who became a linen cloth in target since his companion passed away. The horror to the emptiness could soon with him and, hardly a month after Enrique expired, committed suicide.

There finishes the history of the Costus? No. There its legend begins, because, as it always happens with the premature deaths, the unfortunate loves and the posthumous works, its echo is heard during years. They never age and the time does not corrupt to them.