Carlos Cruz-Diez

Carlos Cruz-Diez was a pivotal figure in the kinetic and op art movements. His art explored color and light, encompassing architectural interventions, site-specific installations, paintings, and prints. His lifelong research into the theory and practice of color examined how we visually and perceptually experience it. His works were uniquely designed to be completed by the viewer's movement and interaction, making each piece a dynamic and engaging experience.

Biography of Carlos Cruz-Diez

Carlos Cruz-Diez was born in 1921 in Caracas, Venezuela. He studied art at the Escuela de Artes Plásticas y Aplicadas in Caracas from 1940 to 1945, and subsequently worked in illustration and advertising.

His first solo shows was held in Caracas in 1947. In his earliest work, Cruz-Diez created figurative canvases that aimed to reflect and comment on social issues. In 1954, influenced by his study of the Bauhaus and the European avant-garde, he shifted his focus to his first abstract and interactive projects.

In 1957, Cruz-Diez began experimenting with colored light. By 1959, he had developed a keen interest in the "physical dimension of color." The following year, he and his family moved to Paris, where he met Argentine artist Luis Tomasello and members of the Groupe de Recherche d’Art Visuel. He quickly became a significant figure within the artistic communities there.

In 1965, Cruz-Diez participated in the group exhibition "The Responsive Eye" at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, which brought global attention to the Op Art movement. Five years later, in 1970, he represented Venezuela at the Venice Biennale.

In 1971, the artist established his workshop on Rue Pierre Sémard in Paris, where he continued to investigate and explore the experiences of color. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Cruz-Diez held teaching positions in both Paris and Caracas.

In 2005, he founded the Cruz-Diez Art Foundation, with centers in Houston and Paris, to promote his legacy and support ongoing research and education. In 2012, he was honored with the Officer grade of the Ordre National de la Légion d'Honneur in Paris, France.

The artist died in 2019 in Paris.