Francisco Sobrino

FRANCISCO SOBRINO (Guadalajara, Spain, 1932- Paris, 2014).
Untitled, "Series 74", 1959/74.
Oil on canvas.
Dated, located and signed on the back.
Measurements: 80 x 80 cm; 87 x 87 cm (frame).
This work is part of the kinetic movement Op Art, or Optical Art, is a pictorial movement born in the United States in 1958, as a derivation of geometric abstraction. Mainly abstract, it is based on the pictorial composition of purely optical phenomena, seeking the sensation of movement on a two-dimensional surface, deceiving the eye through complex optical illusions. Repetition structures with a clear order are used, based on rigorous scientific principles in order to produce unprecedented visual effects. In this case the principles of Op Art are placed at the service of figuration, using the repetition of geometric shapes and the juxtaposition of flat colors to capture movement.
Despite his birth in Guadalajara, Francisco Nephew spent his childhood in Alicante during the first months of the Spanish Civil War. Eventually the artist and his family moved to Madrid, where Francisco began his artistic training at the School of Arts and Crafts from 1946 to 1949. Although he finally emigrated to Argentina with his family in 1949, where they lived until 1958. Later he returned to Spain, but he did not live there for long, since in 1959 he decided to move to Paris to begin his artistic career. His work stands out for his interest as an artist in light and objects, thus coming into contact with like-minded artists who promoted the development of these ideas and brought a greater dimension to his study and professional research. He had his first exhibition with Le Parc, at the Gallery Ad Libitum in Antwerp. In fact, from this union Sobrino became, together with Julio Le Parc, François Morellet, Horacio Garcia Rossi, Joël Stein and Yvaral, the founders in 1960 of the artists' group Groupe de Recherche d'Art Visuel (GRAV). As a participant of the GRAV, he was regularly invited to group and solo exhibitions. In 1964 he was one of the artists who participated in the Light und Bewegung exhibition at documenta III in Kassel. Today his works of art are part of the collection of several museums, including the Tate Modern in London, the Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice, the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris, the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes in Buenos Aires, the Museo de Escultura al Aire Libre (Madrid) (MEAL) and the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía in Madrid. And from various cities such as Tel Aviv, Guadalajara, Chicago, Madrid, New York and Paris. It is worth mentioning that in 1973, Sobrino refused to represent Spain in the Spanish pavilion at the Venice Biennale.