School of the South: Works on Paper from the Permanent Collection
Sunday, June 21, 2009 - Sunday, September 27, 2009
In 1934, Joaquin Torres-García returned to Uruguay, his native country, from Europe as a well-established modern artist with a dream of creating a "School of the South." Such a school would be a place where South American artists could learn and practice abstract, constructivist art. In Montevideo, Torres-García established the Asociación de Arte Constructivo (AAC, Constructive Art Association), a group that held meetings and exhibitions to promote modern art. The AAC disbanded in 1942, and the following year Torres-García founded the Taller Torres-García (TTG, Torres-García Workshop).
Through the AAC and the TTG, Torres-García mentored hundreds of novice and experienced artists, including Francisco Matto, who was an important member of the TTG from its beginning. The TTG was not an academy but rather a space for its members to work intimately with Torres-García and to learn from one another. Though Torres-García died in 1949, the workshop's leaders, including Matto, kept it open through 1962, and its influence continues to this day.
Some of the artists whose work is in this gallery were active in the AAC or the TTG. Others who were not nevertheless were influenced by Torres-García
or by his followers. These works, spanning fifty-two years, display similar themes rooted in geometry and ancient American motifs. Together they offer a glimpse at the legacy of Torres-García and his "School of the South," which was fundamental to the development of modern art in Latin America.
Through the AAC and the TTG, Torres-García mentored hundreds of novice and experienced artists, including Francisco Matto, who was an important member of the TTG from its beginning. The TTG was not an academy but rather a space for its members to work intimately with Torres-García and to learn from one another. Though Torres-García died in 1949, the workshop's leaders, including Matto, kept it open through 1962, and its influence continues to this day.
Some of the artists whose work is in this gallery were active in the AAC or the TTG. Others who were not nevertheless were influenced by Torres-García
or by his followers. These works, spanning fifty-two years, display similar themes rooted in geometry and ancient American motifs. Together they offer a glimpse at the legacy of Torres-García and his "School of the South," which was fundamental to the development of modern art in Latin America.