Félix
Gonzalez-Torres
Félix
Gonzalez-Torres
Gonzalez-Torres
American, 1957 — 1996
A Cuban-born artist who died of AIDS in 1996 at the age of 39, Felix Gonzalez-Torres' whole body of work is an autobiographical project that he shared with the public in a poetic manner.
In the mid-1980s, the artist creates works that are strongly linked with intersubjectivity and develops installations that interact with the viewer, as attested by his large beaded curtain Untitled (Blood). Even though he often tackles dramatic topics such as social injustice, economic inequality, homophobia, disease and death, Gonzalez-Torres never falls into spectacular extremes. Rather, he steadfastly pursues harmony in forms, and delicacy and beauty as a visual and moral virtue. His oeuvre doesn't shock the eye or our feelings; everything is implicit, discreet and fluid. He projects to change the world and to do so he bases his art on suggestive power, transforming the most mundane objects into instruments of poetry.
The works by Felix Gonzalez-Torres held in the Pinault Collection were first presented in the exhibition Where Are We Going? at Palazzo Grassi in Venice, in 2006.
In the mid-1980s, the artist creates works that are strongly linked with intersubjectivity and develops installations that interact with the viewer, as attested by his large beaded curtain Untitled (Blood). Even though he often tackles dramatic topics such as social injustice, economic inequality, homophobia, disease and death, Gonzalez-Torres never falls into spectacular extremes. Rather, he steadfastly pursues harmony in forms, and delicacy and beauty as a visual and moral virtue. His oeuvre doesn't shock the eye or our feelings; everything is implicit, discreet and fluid. He projects to change the world and to do so he bases his art on suggestive power, transforming the most mundane objects into instruments of poetry.
The works by Felix Gonzalez-Torres held in the Pinault Collection were first presented in the exhibition Where Are We Going? at Palazzo Grassi in Venice, in 2006.
