M谩s all谩 del azul (Beyond the Blue), 1978, oil on canvas, 30 x 50", Zelaya Rodriguez Collection; part of the McMullen Museum of Art exhibition: 'Rafael Soriano: The Artist as Mystic.'
The McMullen Museum of Art at Boston College presents an unprecedented examination of the life鈥檚 work of Cuban-born painter Rafael Soriano (1920-2015), one of the major Latin American artists of his generation, in an exhibition showcasing the multiple influences that nurtured a style where, in his words, 鈥渢he intimate and the cosmic converge.鈥�
The exhibition, on view January 30-June 4, 2017, comprises more than 90 paintings, pastels, and drawings by the master of geometric abstraction, who immigrated to the United States in 1962 as a result of the Cuban Revolution.
鈥淭he McMullen is pleased to present the most comprehensive retrospective of the work of one of the last century鈥檚 major artists of Cuban origin,鈥� said McMullen Museum of Art Director and Professor of Art History Nancy Netzer. 鈥淎ccompanied by a bilingual catalogue of essays written by established scholars, the exhibition brings together and examines from various perspectives more than 90 of Rafael Soriano鈥檚 finest paintings.
鈥淲e are delighted that the exhibition will travel to the Long Beach Museum of Art and the Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum at Florida International University in Miami, thereby increasing opportunities for dialogue about this important, though lesser-known artist,鈥� she said.
鈥淭he Artist as Mystic鈥� begins with Soriano鈥檚 works in the Cuban geometric abstract style. It then moves to his transitional, experimental paintings from the 1960s and 1970s, reminiscent of surrealist biomorphism. The exhibition concludes with luminous, mystical imagery in paintings from Soriano鈥檚 mature period. The works on display are from the Rafael Soriano Family Collection, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Art Museum of the Americas, and Long Beach Museum of Art as well as other institutions and private collections.
鈥淪oriano was a global figure in 20th-century art whose work resonated with European and Latin American surrealism,鈥� said curator Elizabeth Thompson Goizueta, a faculty member in the Boston College Romance Languages and Literatures Department.
鈥淪oriano鈥檚 early work in the geometric abstract movement met with great acclaim in Cuba in the 1950s but it was his later, biomorphic and organic imagery that launched him on an international path. 鈥楾he Artist as Mystic鈥� seeks to reveal the complete trajectory of his 艙uvre, both the physical in his early geometrics as well as the metaphysical in his later search for the universal.鈥�
An English-Spanish catalogue edited by Goizueta includes contributions from American, Cuban-American, and Cuban scholars, and examines the effect of the Cuban Revolution on Soriano鈥檚 art as well as his aesthetics in general.
It begins with a contextual analysis of Soriano鈥檚 relationship to the Cuban avant-garde and his position within the emerging mid-century modernists. Essays trace his evolving styles, examining his work through the lens of surrealism and European and Latin American transnational aesthetics. The idea of exile and struggle is a leitmotif, framed within questions of transcendence and spirituality. The contributions suggest both Soriano鈥檚 rootedness in Latin America and his striving for universality.
The exhibition is organized by the McMullen Museum in conjunction with the Rafael Soriano Foundation. Major support has been provided by Boston College and the Patrons of the McMullen Museum.
Public programming 鈥� including a lecture series, the Second Saturdays children鈥檚 program, and a poetry reading and Q&A with Juana Rosa Pita, a friend of Soriano 鈥� is planned for families and the general public this semester. More information, and registration for events, .
Admission to the museum, which is handicapped accessible, is free and open to the public. Beginning on听Feb. 12, docent tours will be held on Sundays from听2-3 p.m.; no prior registration is required. For hours, directions, parking, and program information, visit the .
鈥擱osanne Pellegrini, University Communications
