Julio Barragán
Encyclopedia
Julio Barragán was an Argentine painter of the Concretist
and Cubist schools.
. He began studying art at age 12, creating reproductions of Renaissance art masters such as El Greco
. He studied at the National School of Ceramics, where he graduated in 1945 with a technical degree and met his future wife, Nieves Adeff (b. 1920); Adeff, a niece of painter Mauricio Lasansky
, became an accomplished potter.
His work was first exhibited at the National Fine Arts Exhibition in 1946. His early work was Realist, and he rejected the contemporary genres that had already marked the careers of, among others, his elder brother, Luis Barragán
.
Barragán traveled to Paris
in the late 1940s, however, and was influenced by Georges Braque
and Pablo Picasso
. He joined the "Twenty Painters and Sculptors" group with his brother, Bruno Venier and Oscar Capristo, among others. The group, active in Argentina between 1952 and 1963, exhibited works in a number of Abstract
genres, although Julio Barragán's Concrete
phase contrasted with much of the group's more surreal work. His style of painting then shifted to Cubism
, adopting a chiaroscuro
tone that would become his trademark. The landscapes and cityscapes he painted in subsequent decades were marked by Cubist and Impressionist influences. These became his best-known works, and to meet growing demand, he adopted an "assembly line
" routine at his Villa Urquiza
atelier, whereby several easels were assembled in a row that allowed Barragán to alternate randomly from one work to another.
Barragán's work was exhibited in most of the nation's leading art galleries, including the Gutiérrez y Guad, Sotheby's
, Wildenstein, and Witcomb galleries, as well as in the Eduardo Sívori Museum
and others. His work earned the Braque Prize at the Buenos Aires Museum of Modern Art
(1964), the Grand Prize in Painting at the Belgrano Municipal Salon (1970), and First Prizes at the National Salon in 1976 and 1978. Local art critic Mauricio Neuman described him as a "solitary aristocrat of beauty."
He retired from Buenos Aires' art shows in 2005, and died in his Almagro
neighborhood home in 2011 at age 82.
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 Cubist schools.
Life and work
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...
. He began studying art at age 12, creating reproductions of Renaissance art masters such as El Greco
El Greco
El Greco was a painter, sculptor and architect of the Spanish Renaissance. "El Greco" was a nickname, a reference to his ethnic Greek origin, and the artist normally signed his paintings with his full birth name in Greek letters, Δομήνικος Θεοτοκόπουλος .El Greco was born on Crete, which was at...
. He studied at the National School of Ceramics, where he graduated in 1945 with a technical degree and met his future wife, Nieves Adeff (b. 1920); Adeff, a niece of painter Mauricio Lasansky
Mauricio Lasansky
Mauricio Lasansky is an American graphic artist and printmaker. He is one of the few modern artists who have limited their works almost exclusively to the graphic media...
, became an accomplished potter.
His work was first exhibited at the National Fine Arts Exhibition in 1946. His early work was Realist, and he rejected the contemporary genres that had already marked the careers of, among others, his elder brother, Luis Barragán
Luis Barragán (painter)
Luis Barragán was an Argentine painter of the Abstract figurative and Surrealist schools.-Life and work:Luis Barragán was born in Buenos Aires 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...
.
Barragán traveled to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
in the late 1940s, however, and was influenced by Georges Braque
Georges Braque
Georges Braque[p] was a major 20th century French painter and sculptor who, along with Pablo Picasso, developed the art style known as Cubism.-Early Life:...
and Pablo Picasso
Pablo Picasso
Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso known as Pablo Ruiz Picasso was a Spanish expatriate painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist, and stage designer, one of the greatest and most influential artists of the...
. He joined the "Twenty Painters and Sculptors" group with his brother, Bruno Venier and Oscar Capristo, among others. The group, active in Argentina between 1952 and 1963, exhibited works in a number of Abstract
Abstract art
Abstract art uses a visual language of form, color and line to create a composition which may exist with a degree of independence from visual references in the world. Western art had been, from the Renaissance up to the middle of the 19th century, underpinned by the logic of perspective and an...
genres, although Julio Barragán's 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"...
phase contrasted with much of the group's more surreal work. His style of painting then shifted to Cubism
Cubism
Cubism was a 20th century avant-garde art movement, pioneered by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque, that revolutionized European painting and sculpture, and inspired related movements in music, literature and architecture...
, adopting a chiaroscuro
Chiaroscuro
Chiaroscuro in art is "an Italian term which literally means 'light-dark'. In paintings the description refers to clear tonal contrasts which are often used to suggest the volume and modelling of the subjects depicted"....
tone that would become his trademark. The landscapes and cityscapes he painted in subsequent decades were marked by Cubist and Impressionist influences. These became his best-known works, and to meet growing demand, he adopted an "assembly line
Assembly line
An assembly line is a manufacturing process in which parts are added to a product in a sequential manner using optimally planned logistics to create a finished product much faster than with handcrafting-type methods...
" routine at his Villa Urquiza
Villa Urquiza
Villa Urquiza is a barrio or neighborhood of Buenos Aires city, capital of Argentina. It is located between the barrios of Villa Pueyrredón, Belgrano, Villa Ortúzar, Coghlan, Saavedra and Agronomía. Its limits are the streets and avenues Constituyentes, Crisólogo Larralde, Galván, Núñez, Tronador,...
atelier, whereby several easels were assembled in a row that allowed Barragán to alternate randomly from one work to another.
Barragán's work was exhibited in most of the nation's leading art galleries, including the Gutiérrez y Guad, Sotheby's
Sotheby's
Sotheby's is the world's fourth oldest auction house in continuous operation.-History:The oldest auction house in operation is the Stockholms Auktionsverk founded in 1674, the second oldest is Göteborgs Auktionsverk founded in 1681 and third oldest being founded in 1731, all Swedish...
, Wildenstein, and Witcomb galleries, as well as in the Eduardo Sívori Museum
Eduardo Sívori Museum
The Eduardo Sívori Museum is a municipal art museum in Buenos Aires, Argentina.-Overview:Founded on the initiative of city councilman Fernando Ghio, who proposed the creation of a municipal museum devoted to Argentine artists in 1933, the institution was inaugurated...
and others. His work earned the Braque Prize at the Buenos Aires Museum of Modern Art
Buenos Aires Museum of Modern Art
The Buenos Aires Museum of Modern Art known locally as the Museo de Arte Moderno de Buenos Aires or MAMBA is a modern art museum located in Buenos Aires, Argentina....
(1964), the Grand Prize in Painting at the Belgrano Municipal Salon (1970), and First Prizes at the National Salon in 1976 and 1978. Local art critic Mauricio Neuman described him as a "solitary aristocrat of beauty."
He retired from Buenos Aires' art shows in 2005, and died in his Almagro
Almagro, Buenos Aires
Almagro is a mostly middle-class barrio of Buenos Aires, Argentina.The neighbourhood is delimited by La Plata avenue and Río de Janeiro street to the west, Independencia avenue to the south, Sánchez de Bustamante, Sánchez de Loria and Gallo streets to the east, and Córdoba/Estado de Israel avenues...
neighborhood home in 2011 at age 82.