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ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Francisco Rodón

    A native of San Sebastián, Puerto Rico, painter Francisco Rodón was born in 1934. He studied at Academia Julien, Paris; Academia de San Fernando, Madrid; Academia La Esmeralda, Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes, Mexico; Art Students League, NY; and Instituto de Cultura Puertorriqueña's Taller de Gráfica under the guidance Lorenzo Homar. In 1972, he received first prize for painting at III Biennial in Medellín, Columbia. His work includes portraits of important Latin American cultural figures. Rodón's technique is based on the painting of blotches, which he combines with other colors. His work has been regarded as some of the most important in Latin America, and is part of private and public collections worldwide. There have been several individual exhibitions of his work: Instituto de De Cultura Puertorriqueña, 1961; Museo de la Universidad de PR, various occasions; Centro de Convenciones, San Juan, 1980; Museo de Arte de Ponce, 1984; and Carpenter Center for the Arts, Harvard University, 1987.

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Carlos Irizarry

    Painter and engraver Irizarry Carlos was born in Santa Isabel, PR, in 1938. He studied at School of Art & Design, NY. At the first Bienal de San Juan del Grabado Latinoamericano y del Caribe, celebrated in 1970, his work received honorable mention from a panel of international judges. In 1972, he was awarded first prize at Exposición Internacional del Grabado de Protesta, Vienna; and was honored by "Sin Nombre" magazine in 1975. He was a teacher at Liga de Estudiantes de Arte, and co-founder and director of Centro Nacional de Las Artes en San Juan, PR. His work was featured in numerous individual exhibitions: Museo de Bellas Artes, Instituto de Cultura Puertorriqueña; Museo de Arte de Ponce; and Museo de Arte e Historia de San Juan, all in PR.

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Manuel Hernández Acevedo

    An Aguas Buenas, PR native, born in 1921, painter and engraver Manuel Hernández studied and worked in Artes Gráficas workshops of División de Educación a la Comunidad, San Juan, PR, under the direction of Irene Delano. In 1958, he participated in the Primera Bienal interamericana de Grabado y Pintura, Mexico. His work was included in many important expositions, including Biennial in Cali, Columbia; and Bienal de San Juan del Grabado Latinoamericano y del Caribe, which dedicated an exhibition to him in 1981. Harvard University Museum displays one of his works, which depicts Old San Juan.

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Rafael Tufiño

    Recognized as one of the best Puerto Rican painters of the `50s, Rafael Tufiño was born in NY City in 1922. When he was 10, he moved with his parents to PR. An excellent painter, engraver, drawer, and printmaker, he studied with Alejandro Sánchez Felipe. During the `30s, he established an atelier with artists Tony Maldonado, Juan A. Rosado, Luis Burgos, and Luis García. His first exhibition was in 1942 at Ateneo Puertorriqueño, and consisted of paintings and drawings with an expressionist character. After serving in the US Army in World War II, he moved to Mexico in 1947, where he enrolled in Academia San Carlos. There, he discovered his love for linoleum engraving, which he uses to create art that has a social character. Upon his return to PR, he founded Centro de Arte Puertorriqueño with artists Lorenzo Homar, Julio Rosado Del Valle, Félix Rodríguez Baéz, and José Antonio Torres Martinó. The center was created to promote works by Puerto Rican artists, and to serve as an artistic educational center. Tufiño held graphics workshops at División de Educación Para la Comunidad, which was founded in 1950. The theme of his work is related to PR, its people, and customs. He is considered an urban artist because a large portion of his work is about the city of San Juan, depicting its living reality, battered condition, and sadness. The real life of the town, with its gloominess and misery, passes through Tufiño's hand, becoming an artistic theme and an advocate for a new social and political conscience. In 1954, he was awarded a Guggenheim Scholarship, and created a portfolio called "El café." In 1955, he created the portfolio "La Plena" with Lorenzo Homar and newcomer Tomás Blanco. From 1960-63, he continued working at División de Educación Para la Comunidad and at graphic workshops at Instituto de Cultura Puertorriqueño. In 1967, Instituto de Cultura Puertorriqueña's Escuela de Artes Plásticas was founded and Tufiño became part of the faculty. His work is recognized in PR and abroad and is part of public and private collections. He has been a resident artist of the city of San Juan, and the Bienal de San Juan del Grabado Latinoamericano y del Caribe dedicated its third exhibit to him.

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Lorenzo Homar

    Born in San Juan, PR, in 1913, engraver, painter, and printmaker Lorenzo Homar studied at Pratt Institute, Brooklyn Museum's School of Art, and Art Students League, all in NY. He worked as a jewelry designer for House of Cartier, and was a founding member of Centro de Arte Puertorriqueño. From 1952-57, he was director of graphic workshops of División de Educación a la Comunidad, San Juan, PR, and Instituto de Cultura Puertorriqueña from 1957-73, which developed into a resource for discovering young talent. Among his many honors is a first prize for historical painting from Instituto De Cultura Puertorriqueña, 1957; and first prize from Bienal de ilustraciones de Libros de Niños, Czechoslovakia.

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Oscar Colón Delgado

    Born in Hatillo, PR, in 1889, self-taught painter Oscar Colón received an honorary diploma from Ateneo Puertorriqueño in 1913, a bronze medal in 1933 from Universidad de PR, and first prize for his poster at Carnaval Ponce de Leon, 1938. On numerous occasions, his work was exhibited individually at Universidad de PR, at Galería Nacional de Bellas Artes, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, 1953; and Ateneo Puertorriqueño, 1965. He died in 1968.

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Noemi Ruiz

    The art of Noemi Ruiz originated in the period of formal experimentation that characterized the 1960s in Puerto Rico.  She studied at the Inter-American University in San German and at New York University in New York City, where she began her formal experiments with abstraction under George McNeill.  After completing an M.F.A. Degree in Painting, she returned to Puerto Rico where she pursued an active career as a painter and art educator.  In 1956 she founded the experimental group Gremio 56 with Jaime Carrero.  She subsequently furthered her education through doctoral studies in Madrid, Spain and in Berkley, California at the Art School of the University of California Workshop.  In her painting, Noemi Ruiz is primarily concerned with  achieving balance and equilibrium of abstract organic forms.  Since the early 60s her work has undergone a slow and steady evolution from a strict geometric style toward a softer organic vocabulary reminiscent of landscape and human figures.  Ruiz has devised her own technique of applying paint to the canvas by means of a small foam roll.  This method allows her to elaborate flat uniform areas of color complemented by geometric circular movements that result in compositions of great depth and atmosphere.  Until recently, she avoided the use of texture in her painting.  In her latest series, however, she has incorporated the use of collage to achieve subtle textural effects.

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John Balossi

    Born on Staten Island, NY, in 1931, John Balossi is a distinguished painter and sculptor. He studied at Columbia University, NY, where he obtained his bachelor's and master's. His work has been displayed in many individual exhibitions: Museo de la Universidad de PR, 1961; La Casa del Arte, Galería Colibrí, and Galería Santiago, San Juan, PR, 1963; and Galería Manos, Condado, PR, 1977. Balossi's work was featured in group exhibitions: Muestra de Pintura y Escultura Puertorriqueña, Instituto de Cultura Puertorriqueña, 1977; and Encuentro de Ceramistas Contemporáneos de América Latina, Museo de Arte de Ponce, 1986.

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Last Updated on March 30, 2007