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Agustín CárdenasCoupleCirca 1989
Circa 1989
About the Item
Infused with a crisp modernity and subtle sensuality, this bronze sculpture by Cuban-born artist Agustin Cárdenas is an exceptional example of late-20th-century Latin American art. Depicting two figures locked in an intimate embrace, Couple represents a marriage of his various influences — both his embrace of an African-inspired aesthetic and a surrealist abstraction that dominated European modernism. In particular, it pays homage to the sculpted works of the Romanian sculptor Constantin Brâncuși, depicting the same organic forms and consciousness of line as the celebrated artist. Cárdenas proves himself a master in provoking an innate sensuality in his minimalist forms; his poetic, curved Couple embodies his exploration of the fine line between abstraction and figurative representation.
A founding member of the highly influential group of artists known as Los Once (The Eleven), Cárdenas was one of the earliest adopters and advocates of abstraction in Cuban art. Early in his career, he discovered the works of Hans Arp, Henry Moore and Brâncuși, which clearly had a profound impact on the young artist. He eagerly adopted a similar sparseness of figure, creating his own unique version of the modernist, avant-garde style. He moved to Paris in 1955, quickly befriending the Surrealist André Breton, whom he exhibited alongside the following year. Yet, though his sculptures reveal the influence of the Surrealists, his complex output defies a finite categorization.
Born in 1927 in Matanzas, Cuba, Cárdenas studied at the Academia de San Alejandro in Havana. However, he quickly moved beyond the classical tropes that he learned during his formal education. After his move to Paris, he fully developed his distinctive style that incorporated organic forms and elegant silhouettes in a skillful mixture of abstraction and figuration. Couples and women were among his favorite subjects, and he imbued them with a symbolism that allowed him to explore their many facets across multiple forms.
Both during his life and after his death, his work has been the subject of a number of exhibitions, including shows at the Cuba Palacio de Bellas Artes (Havana, 1955), the Museum of Fine Arts (Houston, 1959) and the National Museum of Bellas Artes (Havana, 1993). Today, his works can be found in museums around the world, including the Musée d'Art Moderne (Paris), the Museo d'Arte Moderna (Rome), the Pompidou Centre (Paris) and the Modern Art Museum (Tel Aviv).
Circa 1989
11 3/4" wide x 7" deep x 24" high
- Creator:Agustín Cárdenas (1927 - 2006, Cuban)
- Creation Year:Circa 1989
- Dimensions:Height: 24 in (60.96 cm)Width: 11.75 in (29.85 cm)Depth: 7 in (17.78 cm)
- Medium:
- Movement & Style:
- Period:
- Condition:
- Gallery Location:New Orleans, LA
- Reference Number:Seller: 31-03661stDibs: LU1867942912
Agustín Cárdenas
Cárdenas was a descendant of african slaves from Senegal and Congo. He was born in Matanzas, a major export port for the sugar industry. Cárdenas studied under Juan José Sicre, in Cuba, and from 1943 to 1949 at la Escuela Nacional de Bellas Artes “San Alejandro” in Havana. He was a member of the Asociación de Grabadores de Cuba (AGC) from 1951 to 1955. Also he was a member of the creative group Los Once from 1953 to 1955. Cárdenas’ work was exhibited several times in 1952 “Pintura Ávila Escultura Cárdenas” at the Palacio de los Trabajadores in Havana, and in 1955 he exhibited a selection of his pieces in “Agustín Cárdenas: 20 esculturas” at the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes de La Habana. Cárdenas settled in Paris in 1955 and in 1957 joined the Surrealist movement in there. His work incorporated aspects of his African heritage and of Dogon totems. In 1987, his work was in the Corea Gallery, Seoul, South Korea. In 1993, his work was exhibited in “Agustín Cárdenas” in the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes de La Habana and in 2002, Cárdenas work was presented in “Desires and Grace” at the Haim Chanin Fine Arts Gallery in New York City. Cárdenas also took part in many group exhibitions such as the IV Exposición Nacional de Pintura, Escultura y Grabado at the Centro Asturiano in Havana in 1950, the “Exposition Internationale du Surréalisme Eros” at the Galerie Daniel Cordier in Paris in 1960. He participated in the II Bienal Internacional de la Pequeña Escultura in 1973 in Budapest, Hungary and the exhibition of Abstract Art “Tono a Tono” in the Salón de la Solidaridad in the Hotel Habana Libre in Havana in 2000. Cárdenas was awarded with several distinctions during his life, including Segundo Premio VI Salón Nacional de Pintura y Escultura, Salones del Capitolio Nacional, Havana, by the Cuban government (1953) and the Silver Medal XXXVII, Salón de Bellas Artes, Círculo de Bellas Artes, Havana (1955). In 1976, he was awarded with the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in France and the Fujisankey Biennal Prize at the Hakone Open-Air Museum, Fujisankey, Japan. In 1995 he received the Premio Nacional de Artes Plásticas by the Cuban Ministry of Culture. His works can be found in many permanent collections around the world, including the Centre National des Arts du Cirque, Fonds National d’Art Contemporain and Musée de la Sculpture en Plein Air in Paris; the Musée d’Art et d’Industrie at Saint-Étienne, France; the Hakone Open-Air Museum, Hakone, Japan; the Musée d’Art Contemporain, Argel, Algeria; Museo de Bellas Artes in Caracas, Venezuela, and in the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes de La Habana in Havana, Cuba.
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