Wifredo Arcay

Wifredo Arcay was a prominent figure among the postwar generation of the Ecole de Paris. He was a skilled painter, muralist, and printmaker. 

Biography of Wifredo Arcay

Wifredo Arcay was born in Havana, Cuba, in 1925. After receiving training at Havana’s Academia de San Alejandro, he was awarded a grant in 1949 to study in Paris. He quickly became part of the post-Cubist abstraction scene and furthered his education under the tutelage of Edgard Pillet and Jean Dewasne at their Atelier d’art abstrait.

In 1951, Arcay was invited by André Bloc, the influential editor of Art d’Aujourd’hui journal, to set up his studio at Bloc’s villa in Meudon. This allowed Arcay to mingle with some of the most prominent members of the historical avant-garde, including Jean Arp, Robert and Sonia Delaunay, and Fernand Léger. Their work was featured in his album "Maîtres d’Aujourd’hui" (1953), which contained twelve silkscreen prints paying homage to the prewar aesthetics of abstraction. A second volume, "Jeunes Peintres d’Aujourd’hui" (1954), showcased a younger generation of artists, including Dewasne, Pillet, and Victor Vasarely.

Renowned as a printmaker, Arcay concentrated on painting only during the 1950s and 1960s. He exhibited his work at the Salon des Réalités Nouvelles (1951-54) and regularly showcased his art in Cuba. Notably, he was part of the Cuban delegation at the São Paulo Biennale in 1955, and he frequently exhibited at Havana's Galería Color-Luz, which was known for promoting geometric abstraction.

Arcay was a member of two influential art groups: the Constructivist Groupe Espace, founded by André Bloc and Félix Del Marle in 1951, and the short-lived Cuban group Los Diez Pintores Concretos (1959-61). 

The artist passed away in Paris, France, in 1997.