Julio Larraz
Check Mate
1993

About the Item

Accomplished painter, sculptor, and draftsman Julio Larraz through his artwork has transcended time and place for more than 50 years to become one of the most influential figures in Latin American and American art. Born in Havana, Cuba in 1944, Larraz is both a Cuban artist and an American artist. His foundation and love for art began to form during his youth and blossomed into an abundant career.The experience of being forced into exile and leaving his childhood home in Cuba had a profound effect on Larraz’s life and art. Before his physical exile, Larraz experienced some internal exile as well. As a child, Larraz spent most of his classroom hours perfecting his talents as an artist rather than attending to his schoolwork. He used school as a life drawing class in which he practiced his technique by creating caricatures and cartoons of teachers. Eternally energetic and full of imaginative impulsivity, he was expelled from several schools eventually landing in a military academy run by ex-officers of Fulgencio Batista. The combination of this ex-politically affiliated academy, followed by his eventual exile from Cuba, led to the development and motivation of Larraz’s caricatures. When asked of this introduction he said they “came naturally. [They were] natural, critical observations.” What he describes as more of a feeling than an observation, his caricatures grew in popularity due to their sense of humor, ability to portray each individual personality, and the skilled quality of his work.

Creator:
Julio Larraz (1944, American)
Creation Year:
1993
Dimensions:
Height: 32 in (81.28 cm)Width: 40 in (101.6 cm)
Medium:
Canvas,Oil
Period:
1990-1999
Condition:
Gallery Location:
New York, NY
Reference Number:
1stDibs: LU8512553222
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Julio Larraz

Julio Larraz was born in Havana, Cuba, March 12, 1944. The son of a newspaper editor, he began drawing at an early age. In 1961 his whole family moved to Miami, Florida. In 1962 they moved again to Washington DC, and in 1964 to New York. There he started drawing political cartoons which were published by the New York Times, Washington Post, Chicago Tribune and Vogue, among others. In 1967 Larraz began working full-time as a professional painter. He credits several New York artists, such as Burt Silverman, for teaching him different painting techniques. In 1971 his first individual show was staged at the Pyramid Gallery in Washington DC. In 1972 he carries out an exhibition at the New School for Social Research in New York and in 1973 another one with the FAR Gallery, also in New York. In 1976 he is awarded by the American Academy of Arts and Letters and the National Institute of Arts and Letters. The same year he is also granted a Cintas scholarship by the International Institute of Education. A year later Larraz moves to San Patricio, New Mexico, fascinated by the light and atmosphere of the Valle Hondo arid hills. There he meets Ron Hall, who was his gallerist for several years in Dallas, Texas. Ron Hall would become one of his closest friends. In 1983 he travels to Paris, where he stays for two years. The new environment inspires an innovation in his paintings. While in Paris, Larraz also travels to Morocco. In 1984, he moves back to the United States. In 1983 he meets Nohra Haime, whose New York gallery represents him until 1994. In 1998 he began working with the Marlborough Gallery of New York, his exclusive representative for the last fifteen years. Larraz moves to Florence, Italy, in 2000, staying there until 2004. Once again, the place offers him a renewed source of inspiration. In 2004, Larraz begins an association with the Galleria D’Arte Contini in Italy, which was bound to be a deep professional and friendly relationship that remains until the present day. Larraz is a frequent visitor of Italy and in 2006 he produced several monumental sculptures which were exhibited in Pietrasanta. Julio Larraz is renowned for the accuracy and painstakingness of his technique, his imagination and subtlety of touch. Today, his work appears more consolidated than ever. It has become more concise and suggestive, both in the brushstrokes revealing the dexterity of a maestro of painting and in the metaphoric flight of his subjects.