“Concrete Cuba” Exhibition
David Zwirner 20th Street
This event has ended.
David Zwirner presents a comprehensive exhibition of paintings and sculptures by the Cuban group of abstract painters Los Diez Pintores Concretos (Ten Concrete Painters), which was active from 1959 to 1961. The exhibition will take place at our 537 West 20th Street location in New York, after having been on view at our London gallery in 2015. Concrete Cuba is one of the first major presentations outside of Cuba to focus exclusively on the origins of concretism in Cuba during the 1950s, and will include important works from the late 1940s through the early 1960s by the twelve artists who were at different times associated with the short-lived group: Pedro Álvarez, Wifredo Arcay, Mario Carreño, Salvador Corratgé, Sandú Darié, Luis Martínez Pedro, Alberto Menocal, José M. Mijares, Pedro de Oraá, José Ángel Rosabal, Loló Soldevilla, and Rafael Soriano.
The development of Cuban geometric abstraction and, specifically, the formation of Los Diez, coincided with the radical political and cultural shifts that raged throughout the country in the 1950s. The decade was marked by widespread turmoil and corruption following the 1952 military coup led by Fulgencio Batista. Culturally, Cuba experienced rising nationalist sentiments instigated in part by the influx of U.S. tourism and material goods. At the same time, Havana was undergoing rapid urbanization and quickly becoming an international city. Against this vibrant backdrop, artists sought a new visual language in which art, specifically abstract art, could function as political and social practice.
Media
Schedule
from January 07, 2016 to February 20, 2016
Saturday, January 9, 10:30 AM: Guided tour of the exhibition by art historian Abigail McEwen
Opening Reception on 2016-01-07 from 18:00 to 20:00