Wednesday, July 02, 2014

World Cup '74 Portrait #98 (Adolfo Nef: Chile)




graphite & putty eraser, with watercolour pencil/30x21cm

Today’s subject is an image of Adolfo Nef, who was represented in both the FKS & Panini 1974 World Cup commemorative sticker albums, & was selected for the Chile squad for the Finals, but subsequently did not make an appearance in any of his country’s three matches at the tournament.
Curiously, the same fate befell another Chilean goalkeeper, Juan Olivares, who had earlier played at the 1966 World Cup: instead, ignored by FKS & Panini, the third (although officially numbered 1) & least internationally experienced ‘keeper in the squad, Leopoldo Vallejos, was the man entrusted with guarding Chile’s net in Germany, which he did with a degree of success, conceding only two goals, but not enough to gain anything more than a couple of draws that saw them eliminated after the First Round group stage.

In terms of the project, then, all three of the Chilean custodians could be said to have something of a ‘ghostly’ relationship with the 1974 World Cup, although the non-playing Nef, along with Olivares, retains more of a presence, represented iconically, via his inclusion in the sticker albums, leading now to the processing of this drawing which locates him within the continuum of those drawn so far &, it is intended, to be drawn.

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