Soto. The Fourth Dimension
10.18.2019 - 02.09.2020
This exhibition presents a retrospective survey of the work of Jesús Rafael Soto (b. 1923, Ciudad Bolívar, Venezuela; d. 2005, Paris). Structured around his concept of the aesthetic experience in terms of temporality, intensity, and viewer participation, Soto. The Fourth Dimension offers a rare opportunity to re-examine the career of a visionary figure who transformed the art of the second half of the 20th century. Over a career spanning more than five decades, Soto played a fundamental role in the redefinition of the social scope and function of the work of art. Breaking away in the 1950s from the conventional separation of painting and sculpture, his practice moved progressively beyond the visual field to become emblematic of the radical shift undergone by the art object in subsequent years. Transcending the optical research of his early work, he formed part of the first group of kinetic artists in Paris together with Jean Tinguely, Iacov Agam, and Victor Vasarely. He also associated himself with experimental groups of international importance, such as Zero and the circle that formed around the Signals gallery in London.
In 1967, Soto started working on his series of Penetrables, large cubic structures made with plastic or metal filaments, which were to occupy him until the end of his career. At the same time, he continued to produce paintings and sculptures whose participative potential is developed without requiring complete access to the interior of the work for the viewer, who nevertheless always intervenes to set it in motion. Until the end of his life, Soto worked on in his studio while accepting numerous large-scale commissions for public areas and institutions around the world.
The Exhibition
Jesús Rafael Soto
Sans titre (Composition dynamique), [Untitled (Dynamic Composition)], 1950
Oil on canvas
73 x 92 x 2 cm
Private collection
© Jesús Rafael Soto, ADAGP, Paris / VEGAP, Bilbao, 2019
Jesús Rafael Soto
Maquette de “Mur optique” (Model for “Optic Wall“), 1951
Paint on wood
19 x 58 x 1 cm
Private collection
© Jesús Rafael Soto, ADAGP, Paris / VEGAP, Bilbao, 2019
Jesús Rafael Soto
Spirale, Série Sotomagie (Spiral, Sotomagie Series), 1955 / Ed. 1967
Color silkscreen on Plexiglas
34 x 34 x 18 cm
Private Collection
© Jesús Rafael Soto, ADAGP, Paris / VEGAP, Bilbao, 2019
Jesús Rafael Soto
Sin título (Untitled), 1958
Painted iron and paint on wood
100 x 100 x 38 cm
Patricia Phelps de Cisneros Collection
© Jesús Rafael Soto, ADAGP, Paris / VEGAP, Bilbao, 2019
Jesús Rafael Soto
Vibration noire (Black Vibration), 1960
Paint on canvas and metal, alabastine
82 x 66 x10 cm
Private collection
© Jesús Rafael Soto, ADAGP, Paris / VEGAP, Bilbao, 2019
Jesús Rafael Soto
Sin título (Untitled) 1961
Wood, metal, paint, and nails
75 x 18 x 25 cm
Patricia Phelps de Cisneros Collection
© Jesús Rafael Soto, ADAGP, Paris / VEGAP, Bilbao, 2019
Jesús Rafael Soto
Sans Titre (Untitled), 1962
Paint on wood and metal
32 x 67 x 27 cm
Private collection
© Jesús Rafael Soto, ADAGP, Paris / VEGAP, Bilbao, 2019
Jesús Rafael Soto
Penetrable blanco y amarillo, (White and Yellow Penetrable), 1968
Painted metal, aluminum frame, and silkscreen on Plexiglass panels
250 x 300 x 300 cm
Private collection
© Jesús Rafael Soto, ADAGP, Paris / VEGAP, Bilbao, 2019
Jesús Rafael Soto
Vibration pure (Pure Vibration), 1968
Acrylic paint on wood and metal, and nylon thread
102 x 172 cm
Private collection
© Jesús Rafael Soto, ADAGP, Paris / VEGAP, Bilbao, 2019
Jesús Rafael Soto
Escritura muro negro (Black Wall Writing), 1977
Acrylic paint on wood and metal, and nylon thread
206 x 402 x 30 cm
Private collection
© Jesús Rafael Soto, ADAGP, Paris / VEGAP, Bilbao, 2019
Jesús Rafael Soto
Pénétrable (Penetrable), 1982
Painted wood and flexible PVC tube
485 x 787 x 867 cm
Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, Madrid
Photo Archive Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía
© Jesús Rafael Soto, ADAGP, Paris / VEGAP, Bilbao, 2019
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