José Antonio Suárez Londoño y Santiago de Paoli
16/8 – 16/9
Bajio 231 (corner of Manzanillo)
Colonia Roma, 06760 CDMX
Mexico
Lulu is proud to
present a two-person exhibition of two South American artists: the Medellín-based, Colombian José Antonio Suárez Londoño, who will present a selection of framed etchings and the Buenos
Aires-based, Argentine Santiago de Paoli, who will present a selection of new
paintings.
present a two-person exhibition of two South American artists: the Medellín-based, Colombian José Antonio Suárez Londoño, who will present a selection of framed etchings and the Buenos
Aires-based, Argentine Santiago de Paoli, who will present a selection of new
paintings.
Known for his
entrancing, meticulous, small-scale drawings, José Antonio Suárez Londoño also makes postcard-sized
etchings. The imagery found therein includes everything from flora and fauna to
two-headed human beings to geometrical configurations to a Robert Walser-sized
script itself as well as references to literature and music. At times
reminiscent of classical, scientific illustrations, it can also bring to mind
Leonardo de Vinci’s notebooks in addition to other, more elusive
arcana. Timeless, bewitching, and strange, these works testify to the rigorous
cultivation of a highly distilled, idiosyncratic graphic language whose
intimate scale merits and richly rewards close viewing.
entrancing, meticulous, small-scale drawings, José Antonio Suárez Londoño also makes postcard-sized
etchings. The imagery found therein includes everything from flora and fauna to
two-headed human beings to geometrical configurations to a Robert Walser-sized
script itself as well as references to literature and music. At times
reminiscent of classical, scientific illustrations, it can also bring to mind
Leonardo de Vinci’s notebooks in addition to other, more elusive
arcana. Timeless, bewitching, and strange, these works testify to the rigorous
cultivation of a highly distilled, idiosyncratic graphic language whose
intimate scale merits and richly rewards close viewing.
Although markedly simpler, the paintings
of Santiago de Paoli are no less weird. Working on unusual supports, which
include felt, slates of wood, and knitted wool, de Paoli’s
most recent body of work alternates between, and sometimes conflates, the
depiction of lunar crescents and non-gendered human posteriors (yes, asses and
moons). Reductive to the point of seeming naïve,
his densely layered paintings are fashioned with a dark and loamy palette,
offset by luminous peaches and violets, pale blues and milky whites, which
brings to mind the Sienna-inflected hues of central Italy. The stark linear
quality of his imagery is not without a touch of European surrealism, while the
tendency toward unconventional supports evokes the ad hoc ingenuity of the
outsider artist.
of Santiago de Paoli are no less weird. Working on unusual supports, which
include felt, slates of wood, and knitted wool, de Paoli’s
most recent body of work alternates between, and sometimes conflates, the
depiction of lunar crescents and non-gendered human posteriors (yes, asses and
moons). Reductive to the point of seeming naïve,
his densely layered paintings are fashioned with a dark and loamy palette,
offset by luminous peaches and violets, pale blues and milky whites, which
brings to mind the Sienna-inflected hues of central Italy. The stark linear
quality of his imagery is not without a touch of European surrealism, while the
tendency toward unconventional supports evokes the ad hoc ingenuity of the
outsider artist.
In both cases, each artist combines a
refreshingly personal approach to subject matter with a strikingly refined
sense of craft. What they make is at once the byproduct of and continuous with
the elaboration of their own unique pictorial universes and ways of perceiving
the world.
refreshingly personal approach to subject matter with a strikingly refined
sense of craft. What they make is at once the byproduct of and continuous with
the elaboration of their own unique pictorial universes and ways of perceiving
the world.
José Antonio Suárez Londoño was born in 1955 in Medellín, Colombia where he lives and works. He received a Diploma and
Postgraduate Degree, Ecole Supérieure d’Art
Visuel, Geneva, Switzerland, 1978-1984. A recent, extensive solo survey,
Muestrario, traveled from La Casa Encendida, Madrid, Spain, to CAPC musée d’art contemporain de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France, to
Museo de Arte Moderno de Medellín, Medellín, Colombia throughout 2015, and he has been the subject of solo
exhibitions at Casas Riegner, Bogota (2016), Galleria Continua, San Gimignano
(2012), The Drawing Center, New York (2012). His work has also been featured in
the 32nd and 24th São Paulo Biennials (2016 and 1998, respectively),
the 55th Venice Biennial (2013) and the Mercosul Biennial (2009), among others.
Postgraduate Degree, Ecole Supérieure d’Art
Visuel, Geneva, Switzerland, 1978-1984. A recent, extensive solo survey,
Muestrario, traveled from La Casa Encendida, Madrid, Spain, to CAPC musée d’art contemporain de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France, to
Museo de Arte Moderno de Medellín, Medellín, Colombia throughout 2015, and he has been the subject of solo
exhibitions at Casas Riegner, Bogota (2016), Galleria Continua, San Gimignano
(2012), The Drawing Center, New York (2012). His work has also been featured in
the 32nd and 24th São Paulo Biennials (2016 and 1998, respectively),
the 55th Venice Biennial (2013) and the Mercosul Biennial (2009), among others.
Santiago de
Paoli was born in 1978 in Buenos Aires, Argentina where he lives and works.
Having received his BFA from the Atlanta College of Art in Atlanta in 2014, he
was a resident at the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, Skowhegan in
2006. A selection of recent solo exhibitions includes: Entre nosotros y el
objeto, Móvil, Buenos Aires, Argentina
(2016); Pescado y Papas, Wireless Ridge, Stanley, Falkland Islands (2015);
Mendoza, Mendoza 2321, Buenos Aires, Argentina (2014). Recent group exhibitions
include: Mostro VII, La Fábrica, Buenos Aires, Argentina; Ceramics,
Galería Ruby, Buenos Aires, Argentina
(2017); Planeta Salvaje, MCHG, Buenos Aires, Argentina (2016); Omnidireccional,
Centro Cultural Recoleta, Buenos Aires, Argentina (2015).
Paoli was born in 1978 in Buenos Aires, Argentina where he lives and works.
Having received his BFA from the Atlanta College of Art in Atlanta in 2014, he
was a resident at the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, Skowhegan in
2006. A selection of recent solo exhibitions includes: Entre nosotros y el
objeto, Móvil, Buenos Aires, Argentina
(2016); Pescado y Papas, Wireless Ridge, Stanley, Falkland Islands (2015);
Mendoza, Mendoza 2321, Buenos Aires, Argentina (2014). Recent group exhibitions
include: Mostro VII, La Fábrica, Buenos Aires, Argentina; Ceramics,
Galería Ruby, Buenos Aires, Argentina
(2017); Planeta Salvaje, MCHG, Buenos Aires, Argentina (2016); Omnidireccional,
Centro Cultural Recoleta, Buenos Aires, Argentina (2015).