(1923 – 2005), Venezuela

Jesús Rafael Soto Biography

Venezuelan-born artist Jesús Rafael Soto trained at an art school in Caracas. In 1950 he moved to Paris, which remained his base until his death in 2005. In 1955 Soto participated in Le Mouvement (The Movement) at Galerie Denise René, the exhibition that effectively launched kinetic art. During the same decade, he began making linear, kinetic constructions using industrial and synthetic materials such as nylon, Perspex, steel, and industrial paint.

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Major exhibitions of Soto’s work took place at Signals London (1965); the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago (1971); the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York (1974); and Musée National d’Art Moderne, Paris (1979). For each of these exhibitions, the artist used swaying nylon thread or plastic string to turn the gallery space into an all-encompassing, kinetic installation, in which the experience of the spectator within the constructed environment was central to the work’s meaning. Soto’s sculptures and environments often play with the juxtaposition of solid and void, deliberately unsettling the act of viewing by blurring the distinction between reality and illusion.

Text courtesy Perrotin.

Jesús Rafael Soto
featured artworks

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Ovoide mediano negro y rojo by Jesús Rafael Soto contemporary artwork sculpture
Jesús Rafael Soto Ovoide mediano negro y rojo, 2003 Painting on nylon, plexiglas and metal
100 x 80 x 56 cm
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Colores y vibración by Jesús Rafael Soto contemporary artwork sculpture
Jesús Rafael Soto Colores y vibración, 1999 Painting on wood and metal, nylon strings
239 x 259 x 17 cm
Galería RGR Request Price & Availability
Maquette de la sphère Lutetia by Jesús Rafael Soto contemporary artwork sculpture
Jesús Rafael Soto Maquette de la sphère Lutetia, 1995 Plexiglass and painted metal
55 x 45 x 45 cm
Galería RGR Request Price & Availability
Untitled / Sans titre by Jesús Rafael Soto contemporary artwork sculpture
Jesús Rafael Soto Untitled / Sans titre, c. 1960 Paint on coated masonite panel and metal rods
100 x 100 cm
Perrotin Request Price & Availability
Untitled (Barroco negro) by Jesús Rafael Soto contemporary artwork mixed media
Jesús Rafael Soto Untitled (Barroco negro), 1961 Mixed media on panel
95.3 x 158.8 x 15.2 cm
Hauser & Wirth Request Price & Availability
Untitled (Pour Maguy et Moamer) by Jesús Rafael Soto contemporary artwork mixed media
Jesús Rafael Soto Untitled (Pour Maguy et Moamer), 1958 Paint on Plexiglas and wood
60 x 60 x 24 cm
Hauser & Wirth Request Price & Availability
Harmonie transformable / Armonía transformable by Jesús Rafael Soto contemporary artwork sculpture
Jesús Rafael Soto Harmonie transformable / Armonía transformable, 1956 Paint on Plexiglas and wood
80 x 40 x 100 cm
Hauser & Wirth Request Price & Availability
Ecriture bleu central by Jesús Rafael Soto contemporary artwork painting
Jesús Rafael Soto Ecriture bleu central, 1999 Paint on wood and metal, nylon
208 x 304 cm
Perrotin Request Price & Availability
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Jesús Rafael Soto
recent exhibitions

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Jesús Rafael Soto
represented by

Galería RGR contemporary art gallery in Mexico City, Mexico
Galería RGR Mexico City
Perrotin contemporary art gallery in Paris Marais, France
Perrotin Dubai, Hong Kong, New York, Paris, Seoul +2
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Jesús Rafael Soto
in Ocula Magazine

Jesús Rafael Soto
in Ocula Advisory

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