Luis Barragán (painter)
Encyclopedia
Luis Barragán was an Argentine painter of the Abstract figurative
and Surrealist schools.
in 1914, and studied at the National Art School and the Ernesto de la Cárcova School of Fine Arts
.
He secured his first gallery exhibition in 1939 as a member of the Orion Group. The Orion Group, which he founded with Vicente Forte, Orlando Pierri, Leopoldo Presas
, Ideal Sánchez, and art critic Ernesto Rodríguez, became the leading local exponent of Surrealism in art. Art gallery catalogs featuring images of Barragán's canvases would feature his signature phrase: "In art, each work, as it is being created, will make its own rules."
After the two exposures of Orion, Barragán worked on a series of small canvases with figures and heads, and these were displayed in his first solo exhibition, at the Galería Sintonía, in 1948. The geometric aesthetic in his works yielded to more toward the abstract during the 1950s, and broke with the Geometric, Concrete
and Lyrical Abstraction
trends prevailing among Argentine artists at the time.
Barragán was among the founders of the Twenty Painters and Sculptors group, with whom he worked between 1952 and 1963; the group also included Julián Althabe, Vicente Forte, Carlos Torrallardona, Bruno Venier, Líbero Badii, Aurelio Macchi and Juan Carlos Labourdette. He was given a second solo exhibition in 1957 at the Wildenstein Gallery, and he participated in the São Paulo Biennale in 1954 and 1973. The National Academy of Fine Arts awarded Barragán the Augusto Palanza Prize in 1971, and in 1977, he was incorporated as a distinguished academic.
He continued to exhibit work in local galleries in subsequent years, notably in a series hosted by the now defunct Banco Alas
. Another artist regularly featured in this series, his younger brother Julio Barragán, also became well-known in Argentina. The elder Barragán's art show appearances became less frequent in later years, though in September 2002, he was featured in a Van Eyck Gallery exhibition. Local critic Raúl Santana wrote on the occasion that his work "appears more vital, prouder and more uncompromising than ever. The intensity of the color in both the backdrop and the lines provide a constant counterpoint, and reflects the artist's well-known love of music."
Barragán died on July 25, 2009, at age 94.
Abstract figurative
Abstract figurative is a term describing a synthesis of abstraction and figuration in art – the creation of any art piece that combines Abstract art and Figurative art, bringing together two opposing styles by taking strong references to the real world and synthesizing them with departures from...
and Surrealist schools.
Life and work
Luis Barragán was born in Buenos AiresBuenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
in 1914, and studied at the National Art School and the Ernesto de la Cárcova School of Fine Arts
Instituto Universitario Nacional del Arte
The National University of the Arts is an Argentine university established in 1996 as an incorporation of various national institutions dedicated to the teaching of fine arts....
.
He secured his first gallery exhibition in 1939 as a member of the Orion Group. The Orion Group, which he founded with Vicente Forte, Orlando Pierri, Leopoldo Presas
Leopoldo Presas
Leopoldo Presas was an Argentine artist. He experienced different styles throughout his life. He had academic training and started as a figurative painter though he later turned into expressionism as well. He tried several mediums as oil, tempera, charcoal and pencil on different supports including...
, Ideal Sánchez, and art critic Ernesto Rodríguez, became the leading local exponent of Surrealism in art. Art gallery catalogs featuring images of Barragán's canvases would feature his signature phrase: "In art, each work, as it is being created, will make its own rules."
After the two exposures of Orion, Barragán worked on a series of small canvases with figures and heads, and these were displayed in his first solo exhibition, at the Galería Sintonía, in 1948. The geometric aesthetic in his works yielded to more toward the abstract during the 1950s, and broke with the Geometric, Concrete
Concrete art
Concrete art and design or concretism is an abstractionist movement that evolved in the 1930s out of the work of De Stijl, the futurists and Kandinsky around the Swiss painter Max Bill. The term "concrete art" was first introduced by Theo van Doesburg in his "Manifesto of Concrete Art"...
and Lyrical Abstraction
Lyrical Abstraction
Lyrical Abstraction is either of two related but distinctly separate trends in Post-war Modernist painting, and a third definition is the usage as a descriptive term. It is a descriptive term characterizing a type of abstract painting related to Abstract Expressionism; in use since the 1940s...
trends prevailing among Argentine artists at the time.
Barragán was among the founders of the Twenty Painters and Sculptors group, with whom he worked between 1952 and 1963; the group also included Julián Althabe, Vicente Forte, Carlos Torrallardona, Bruno Venier, Líbero Badii, Aurelio Macchi and Juan Carlos Labourdette. He was given a second solo exhibition in 1957 at the Wildenstein Gallery, and he participated in the São Paulo Biennale in 1954 and 1973. The National Academy of Fine Arts awarded Barragán the Augusto Palanza Prize in 1971, and in 1977, he was incorporated as a distinguished academic.
He continued to exhibit work in local galleries in subsequent years, notably in a series hosted by the now defunct Banco Alas
Banco Alas
Banco Alas Cooperativo Limitado was a commercial bank based in Buenos Aires, Argentina.Inaugurated in 1979, Banco Alas became one of the first to offer ATM services in the country. The bank prospered initially, growing to include 76 branches, and over 1,200 employees...
. Another artist regularly featured in this series, his younger brother Julio Barragán, also became well-known in Argentina. The elder Barragán's art show appearances became less frequent in later years, though in September 2002, he was featured in a Van Eyck Gallery exhibition. Local critic Raúl Santana wrote on the occasion that his work "appears more vital, prouder and more uncompromising than ever. The intensity of the color in both the backdrop and the lines provide a constant counterpoint, and reflects the artist's well-known love of music."
Barragán died on July 25, 2009, at age 94.