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Jesús Rafael Soto

Venezuelan, 1923–2005

2.9k followers

Jesús Rafael Soto

Bio

Venezuelan, 1923–2005

Followers
2.9k
Biography

Noted as a defining figure of both the Op Art movement and Kinetic Sculpture, Jesus Rafael Soto employed industrial and synthetic materials such as nylon and steel to produce his trademark sculptural reliefs. Soto’s work dealt with pure abstraction, color theory, and the dynamic between background and foreground, as seen in works such as Vibration Blanc et Jaune (paint on wood and metal, 1959), in which the artist stimulates optical effects through the manipulation of color relationships, combining hurried black lines with interruptions of yellow and white. In the 1950s and ‘60s, Soto collaborated with Group Zero artists, including Otto Piene, Heinz Mack, Gunther Uecker, Yves Klein, Lucio Fontana and Jean Tinguely, who stressed unity on an intellectual and creative level. Soto was also influenced by- and influential to the Russian Constructivists and artist contemporaries such as Piet Mondrian.

Related Categories
Career Highlights
Learn more about artist insights.
Blue chip status
Blue chip representation
Represented by internationally reputable galleries.
Auction
High auction record
$1m, Sotheby's, 2018
User
Solo show at a major institution
Centre Pompidou, and 1 more
Group
Group show at a major institution
The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), and 7 more
Institution
Collected by a major institution
Museum of Modern Art (MoMA)
Publication
Reviewed by a major art publication
Artforum, and 3 more
Fair
Included in a major biennial
Venice Biennale National Pavilion, and 2 more
Biography

Noted as a defining figure of both the Op Art movement and Kinetic Sculpture, Jesus Rafael Soto employed industrial and synthetic materials such as nylon and steel to produce his trademark sculptural reliefs. Soto’s work dealt with pure abstraction, color theory, and the dynamic between background and foreground, as seen in works such as Vibration Blanc et Jaune (paint on wood and metal, 1959), in which the artist stimulates optical effects through the manipulation of color relationships, combining hurried black lines with interruptions of yellow and white. In the 1950s and ‘60s, Soto collaborated with Group Zero artists, including Otto Piene, Heinz Mack, Gunther Uecker, Yves Klein, Lucio Fontana and Jean Tinguely, who stressed unity on an intellectual and creative level. Soto was also influenced by- and influential to the Russian Constructivists and artist contemporaries such as Piet Mondrian.

Career Highlights
Learn more about artist insights.
Blue chip status
Blue chip representation
Represented by internationally reputable galleries.
Auction
High auction record
$1m, Sotheby's, 2018
User
Solo show at a major institution
Centre Pompidou, and 1 more
Group
Group show at a major institution
The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), and 7 more
Institution
Collected by a major institution
Museum of Modern Art (MoMA)
Publication
Reviewed by a major art publication
Artforum, and 3 more
Fair
Included in a major biennial
Venice Biennale National Pavilion, and 2 more
Shows Featuring Jesús Rafael Soto
Articles Featuring Jesús Rafael Soto
The Most Influential Latin American Artists of the 20th Century
Nov 18th, 2019
The Most Influential Latin American Artists of the 20th Century
How Op Artists of the 1960s Created Their Hallucinatory Effects
Aug 21st, 2018
How Op Artists of the 1960s Created Their Hallucinatory Effects
A Show of Latin-American Op Artists Rebukes MoMA’s Eurocentrism
Feb 2nd, 2016
A Show of Latin-American Op Artists Rebukes MoMA’s Eurocentrism
15 Latin American Artists Who Made Geometric Abstraction What It Is Today
Jul 14th, 2015
15 Latin American Artists Who Made Geometric Abstraction What It Is Today
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