The legacy of the School of the South
CHAPTER 5: Abstraction and the consolidation of modernity
Chapters
By the mid 1950s, abstract artists in the Rio de la Plata region moved beyond specific styles, such as Constructive Universalism and Concrete art, in order to foster a more inclusive approach to abstraction. This generation of artists contributed to the consolidation of modernism as the leading visual language, which became institutionalized through the founding of museums of modern art in various South American cities during the 1950s and 1960s. In a time of economic prosperity, abstraction became a symbol of a modern utopia and general optimism for the future.
Image credit:
Joaquín Torres-García
Untitled, 1929-1930 (detail)
Watercolor over pencil on paper mounted on cardboard
The Blanton Museum of Art, The University of Texas at Austin
Gift of John and Barbara Duncan, 1971