Luis Molinari (1929 in

Guayaquil , motto = Por Guayaquil Independiente en, For Independent Guayaquil , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Ecuador#South America , pushpin_re ...

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ' ...

– 1994 in Quito, Ecuador) (Luis Molinari-Flores) was a member of the VAN Group (Vanguardia Artística Nacional), a collective of informal constructivist artists founded by

Enrique Tábara Luis Enrique Tábara (21 February 1930 – 25 January 2021 Aníbal Villacís Aníbal Villacís (1927, Ambato, Ecuador – March 7, 2012) was a master painter from Ecuador who used raw earthen materials such as clay and natural pigments to paint on walls and doors throughout his city when he could not afford expensive artis ...

. Molinari began his artistic career focused on

formalism Formalism may refer to: * Form (disambiguation) * Formal (disambiguation) * Legal formalism, legal positivist view that the substantive justice of a law is a question for the legislature rather than the judiciary * Formalism (linguistics) * Scie ...

, but soon discovered the works of

Vasarely Victor Vasarely (; born Győző Vásárhelyi, ; 9 April 1906 – 15 March 1997) was a Hungarian-French artist, who is widely accepted as a "grandfather" and leader of the Op art movement. His work entitled ''Zebra'', created in 1937, is consi ...

and was inspired by geometric forms and their rich optical effects. From 1951 to 1960, Molinari lived and painted in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

. In

1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Jan ...

, Molinari traveled to

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, where he began work with the Group de Recherche d'Art Visuel. Molinari lived in Paris from 1960 to 1966. In 1963, Molinari exhibited his painting ''La Cuna de Mangle'' at the Paris Biennial at the Museum of Modern Art. In 1964, Molinari took a two-month trip to the United States to study the artworks in museums of major US cities. Intrigued by pop art in America, he saw its infinite possibilities. In 1966, Molinari moved back to Ecuador with the sole purpose of acquiring a visa to move to the United States. During his time back in Guayaquil, Ecuador, Molinari reconnected with old colleagues:

, León Ricaurte,

Gilberto Almeida Gilberto Almeida Egas (30 May 1928 – 20 April 2015) was an Ecuadorian painter born in San Antonio de Ibarra, in Imbabura Province. He studied at the School of Fine Arts in Quito from 1953 to 1957. His early work was in many media, especially pa ...

Oswaldo Moreno Oswaldo Moreno Heredia (1929 – 3 December 2011) was an Ecuadorian painter. His paintings are in collections in the Americas, Europe, Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a con ...

and

Guillermo Muñoz Guillermo Muñoz Ramírez (born 20 October 1961) is a Mexican former football defender, who was nicknamed "El Turbo". He has 20 caps for the Mexico national team between 1987 and 1993, and on the squad at the 1993 Copa América. He made his ...

and began working with their Group VAN (Vanguardia Artistica Nacional). Two years later, in 1968, Molinari obtained his visa and moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

where he lived for seven years. While in New York, Molinari became fascinated with the optical geometric ( Op Art) works of

. He soon developed his own style, inspired by that of his compatriot, Tábara, that fused the tropical nature of his hometown into the informal constructivist geometry, toward the creation of a visual autonomy. In further development, Molinari began to focus on the geometrical optical effects and changing perspectives. He began intense studies of color theory, yet at times explored spontaneity of color and chromatic delusions. In 1977, Molinari was part of an exhibit at

MoMA PS1 MoMA PS1 is a contemporary art institution located in Court Square in the Long Island City neighborhood in the borough of Queens, New York City. In addition to its exhibitions, the institution organizes the Sunday Sessions performance series, the ...

titled, ''10 Downtown: 10 Years'' (September 11–October 2, 1977). Like other VAN informalists, Luis Molinari sought to honor the history of his homeland with a tribute to Pre-Columbian

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing building ...

, as seen in his 1974 painting, ''Temple of the nuns-Uxmal''.

References

* https://web.archive.org/web/20151009235418/http://www.moma.org/learn/resources/archives/ps1_exhibitions/exhibitions_1977#Exh257 * Salvat, ''Arte Contemporáneo de Ecuador''. Salvat Editores Ecuatoriana, S.A., Quito,

, 1977. *Ministry of Education and Culture of Ecuador; principally Castelo, Hernán Rodriguez (n.d.). ''Panorama of the Arté'': ''Ecuadorian Library of the Family number nine''. National Publishing Corporation (House of the Ecuadorian Culture), n.p.. 1929 births 1994 deaths Modern painters Ecuadorian painters People from Guayaquil {{Ecuador-artist-stub