Víctor Vázquez is a photographer and a contemporary conceptual artist born in

San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John (disambiguation), Saint John, most commonly refers to: * San Juan, Puerto Rico * San Juan, Argentina * San Juan, Metro Manila, a highly urbanized city in the Philippines San Juan may also refer to: Places Arge ...

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

. Víctor Vázquez has been working as an artist for more than 20 years, creating photographs, three-dimensional objects, videos and installation works in which the human body figures both conceptually and formally. Vázquez offers a series of semiotic constructs that navigate identity, ritual, politics and anthropological inquiry. Themes include the duality of language and meaning and the relationships between nature and culture. He was an artist in resident at Cuerpos Pintados, Fundacion America in

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Regi ...

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

, in the year of 2002 and at Proyecto ´ace Art Center in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

in the year 2006.

Education

Received a BFA from the university of Puerto Rico and educated on the doctoral level at

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

before traveling to

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

and

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

to study

art Art is a diverse range of cultural activity centered around ''works'' utilizing creative or imaginative talents, which are expected to evoke a worthwhile experience, generally through an expression of emotional power, conceptual ideas, tec ...

, literature and cultural history.

Work

Víctor Vázquez Works are a complex amalgam of different medium. They are often difficult to decipher, yet invariably yield layers of profound meaning. His range is broad, and although he is best known for his photographs, he is essentially a maker of objects, video and installation. Vázquez art has been focused in exploring ideas related with the construction of knowledge, history, Memory, identity and migration. The intention has been to investigate and reflect on how the state imposes, reproduces and legitimizes acceptable social practices. His book "The Realm of Waiting", published in 1990 and produced by the Humanities of Art and the Ponce Museum of Art in Puerto Rico was awarded best book of art of the year by the Puerto Rico Art Critic Association for been one of the first works of art that has dealt with the Aid Epidemic in the United States. His work has been shown in

Paris, France Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, the Caribbean and

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

. He has participated in numerous biennial and Art Festival (notably, Habana Biennial, 1995-1997), Cuenca (1997), São Paulo (1995), Foto Fest (1994). His work is part of the collection of the

Bibliothèque Nationale A library is a collection of books, and possibly other materials and media, that is accessible for use by its members and members of allied institutions. Libraries provide physical (hard copies) or digital (soft copies) materials, and may be a p ...

in Paris, the Museum of fine art in

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

, Museum of Art of Puerto Rico, and the Smithsonian Institution, OAS Art Museum in

Washington DC Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and Federal district of the United States, federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from ...

Selected solo exhibitions

*2011 - SLUCAG - Southeastern. Louisiana University Contemporary Art Gallery, Louisiana, United States (Curated by Dale Newkirk) *2009 - Displacement, Dislocation and Encounter. Seraphin Gallery, Philadelphia, United States *2008 - Tierra de Mudos. New York Photo Festival, Dumbo Art Center, Brooklyn, New York *Body to Body. Museo de Arte Contemporáneo Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico *2007 - Dialogues. Museo de Arte de Ponce, Ponce, Puerto RicoArtNet,

*2006 - Selected Works, Galerie Lina Davidov, Paris, France *Liquids and Signs. Espacio Proyecto ACE, Buenos Aires, Argentina *Liquids and Signs. Walter Otero Gallery, San Juan, Puerto Rico *2005 - Selected Works. Walter Otero Gallery, San Juan, Puerto Rico *El Ojo Ajeno. Photography Center, Lima, Peru *Liquids and Signs. Martha Schneider Gallery, Chicago, Illinois, United States *2004 - Liquids and Signs, Seraphin Gallery, Philadelphia, United States *2003 - Requiem for / by a Culture. Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico, San Juan, Puerto Rico *L.A. International Biennial Art Invitational. Couturier Gallery, Los Angeles, United States *Ancestros. Galerie Baudoin Lebon, Paris, France *Borders. Seraphin Gallery, Philadelphia, United States *2001 - Body and Memory. Installation, Galeria Universidad del Sagrado Corazón, San Juan, Puerto Rico *Recent Works. Seraphin Gallery, Philadelphia, United States *Selected Works. Galería de Arte Contemporáneo David Pérez-Mac Collum,

Guayaquil Guayaquil (), officially Santiago de Guayaquil, is the largest city in Ecuador and also the nation's economic capital and main port. The city is the capital (political), capital of Guayas Province and the seat of Guayaquil Canton. The city is ...

Ecuador Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...

*2000 - Cultura-Natura, Museo de las Américas, San Juan, Puerto Rico *Recent Works. Photography/Installation, Sicardi Gallery, Houston, Texas, United States *1999 - The House of Souls. Martha Schneider Gallery, Chicago, Illinois, United States *The House of Souls. Centro Wifredo Lam,

Havana Havana (; ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

*1997 - Body and the Bird. Martha Schneider Gallery, Chicago, Illinois, United States *Cuenca Biennial,

Cuenca, Ecuador Cuenca, officially Santa Ana de los Ríos de Cuenca, is an Ecuadorian city, head of the Cuenca Canton, canton of the same name and capital of the Azuay Province, province of Azuay, as well as its largest and most populated city. It is crossed by t ...

*1996 - Body and the Bird. Galería Botello, San Juan, Puerto Rico *1994 - The Self Portrait and Extended Body. Galería Botello, San Juan, Puerto Rico *1993 - The Realm of Waiting. Hostos Gallery,

Hostos Community College Eugenio María de Hostos Community College of The City University of New York is a public community college in the South Bronx, New York City. It is part of the City University of New York (CUNY) system and was created by an act of the Board ...

, Bronx, New York, United States *1992 - The Realm of Waiting. Museo de Arte de Ponce, Ponce, Puerto Rico *1991 - Victor Vazquez’s Photography. Galería Latinoamericana, San Juan, Puerto Rico *1989 - Rites. Galería Latinoamericana, Photography Collection, San Juan, Puerto Rico *Rites.

University of Puerto Rico The University of Puerto Rico (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Universidad de Puerto Rico;'' often shortened to UPR) is the main List of state and territorial universities in the United States, public university system in the Commonwealth (U.S. i ...

, Recinto de Mayagüez, Puerto Rico *1987 - Eloquences : China and Its People, Liga de Arte, San Juan, Puerto Rico *1986 - Eloquences : China and Its People, Galeria Oller, University of Puerto Rico, San Juan, Puerto Rico

Awards

*Angel Ramos Foundation Award, Prize of acquisition, Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Puerto Rico *Best Book Award of the year “The Realm of Waiting”, Puerto Rico Art Critics Association *Scholarship for Graduate Studies from

and

New York State New York, also called New York State, is a state in the northeastern United States. Bordered by New England to the east, Canada to the north, and Pennsylvania and New Jersey to the south, its territory extends into both the Atlantic Ocean and ...

for

Study abroad International students or exchange students, also known as foreign students, are students who undertake all or part of their secondary or tertiary education in a country other than their own. In 2022, there were over 6.9 million international ...

in India, China and Japan *Fellowship from

Seton Hall University Seton Hall University (SHU) is a Private university, private Catholic Church, Catholic research university in South Orange, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1856 by then-Bishop James Roosevelt Bayley and named after his aunt, Saint Elizab ...

, New Jersey, United States

Collections

*Artium Center, Museo Vasco de Arte Contemporáneo, Victoria Gasteiz, Spain * Museum of Art Fort Lauderdale (MOAFL), Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States *

Museum of Fine Arts Houston The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (MFAH), is an art museum located in the Houston Museum District of Houston, Texas. The permanent collection of the museum spans more than 5,000 years of history with nearly 80,000 works from six continents. Follo ...

, Texas, United States *Museo de Arte Latinoamericano de Buenos Aires (MALBA), Argentina *Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Puerto Rico, San Juan, Puerto Rico *The Smithsonian Institution, OAS Art Museum, Washington D.C., United States *Centro Wifredo Lam, Havana, Cuba *Casa Las Américas, Havana, Cuba *Lehigh Photography Collection, Lehigh, Pennsylvania, United States *ARTIS, Paris, France *

El Museo del Barrio El Museo del Barrio, often known simply as El Museo (the museum), is a museum at 1230 Fifth Avenue in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is located near the northern end of Fifth Avenue's Museum Mile, immediately north of the Museum of the City ...

, New York, United States * Museum of Art of Puerto Rico,

, Puerto Rico *

Museum of Latin American Art The Museum of Latin American Art (MOLAA) was founded by Dr. Robert Gumbiner in 1996 in Long Beach, California, United States, and serves the greater Los Angeles area. MOLAA is the only museum in the United States dedicated to modern and contemp ...

(MoLAA), Los Angeles, United States *Museo de Historia, Antropología y Arte,

, Río Piedras, Puerto Rico * Point of Contact Gallery at

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York, United States. It was established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church but has been nonsectarian since 1920 ...

, United States *Fundacion América, Santiago, Chile *

Polytechnic University of Valencia The Polytechnic University of Valencia (; , ), shortened to UPV, is a Spanish university located in Valencia, with a focus on science, technology, and arts. It was founded in 1968 as the Higher Polytechnic School of Valencia and became a univers ...

, Valencia, Spain *Museo de Arte de Ponce, Ponce, Puerto Rico *

Bibliothèque nationale de France The (; BnF) is the national library of France, located in Paris on two main sites, ''Richelieu'' and ''François-Mitterrand''. It is the national repository of all that is published in France. Some of its extensive collections, including bo ...

, Paris, France

References

External links

*
Schneider Gallery

Seraphin Gallery

Walter Otero Gallery
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vazquez, Victor Artists from San Juan, Puerto Rico Puerto Rican artists Puerto Rican photographers Year of birth missing (living people) Living people New York University alumni