José MARIA CRUXENT, Sarrià-Sant Gervasi, spain, 1911 - Coro, Venezuela, 2005.

cruxent IS REPRESENTED BY ODALYS, MADRID, SPAIN, WILLIAM ALLEN WORD & IMAGE, london, united kingdom.

Cruxent is considered a leading figure in the Venezuelan avant-garde and a well-known archaeologist. Born in Catalonia and settled in Venezuela, he emerged as a crucial figure in the development of that country’s archaeology, while simultaneously working as an artist and developing an informalist language. Cruxent is known for his significant contributions to the understanding of Venezuela’s cultural history from the Paleoindian period to the early Colonial period.

For Cruxent, informalism is seen as ‘an escape into the subconscious’ and a way to ‘say what lies beyond consciousness through this painting’. The Amazonian nature, which so nurtured the artist and archaeologist, is essential in his creative work because of the materials it provides him (tree bark, pieces of hammock and indigenous fabrics to create dense textures) and because of the life experience itself, which had an impact on the images captured in his memory.

Cruxent was represented by the iconic Clara Diament Sujo, a pioneering Argentine-born Venezuelan art critic, curator, and gallerist who became a central figure in the promotion of Latin American modern art on the international stage. Over a 60-year career, she was instrumental in breaking down art historical barriers between North and South America through her concept of the "Art of the Americas".

As the founder of the influential Estudio Actual in Caracas (1968) and the CDS Gallery in New York (1981), she exerted a profound influence on the career and visibility of José María Cruxent.