A protean creative spirit who became one of Modernism’s most original and independent artists, Oswaldo Vigas (1923-2014) drew on an unusually broad range of styles and ideas in his work. A native of Venezuela, Vigas explored a diversity of influences that served his ongoing search into his mestizo identity. Cubism, Surrealism, Constructivism, informalism, and Neo-Figuration are all employed in his work in a personal way, while he remained faithful to his own artistic convictions, to create a body of work based on imagery that is both authentic and unique.

In 1952 Vigas began a twelve-year stay in Paris, where he encountered some of the era’s most important artists, movements, and ideas, while becoming a key player in the city’s legendary avant-garde scene. He was a frequent participant in the prestigious Salon de Mai exhibitions, along with Jean Arp, Marc Chagall, Max Ernst, Alberto Giacometti, Wifredo Lam, Fernando Leger René Magritte, Henri Matisse, Roberto Matta, Pablo Picasso, and other major artists. In 1962, at the Musée D´Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris—the MoMA of its time and place-- Vigas took part of the first Parisian exhibition of Latin American art, a landmark event that also included Berni, Lam, Matta, Tamayo, and Toledo.

Today, interest in Vigas among institutions and private collectors is growing, as the world embraces a Modernist master whose personal journey helps round out the history of twentieth and twenty-first century art. Sales of Vigas’ works at auction continue to draw increasing prices, and his paintings, drawings, and other works are represented worldwide in important museums and personal collections on five continents.