(Caracas, 1923 - Paris, 2019)

Carlos Cruz-Diez was one of the most prominent figures of Kinetic art whose work has been based upon the revaluation of color as an experience in itself, as a phenomenon of light in which interpretation or cultural background are no longer relevant. His artistic practice invites viewers to become conscious of how perceptual relationships constitute the aesthetic, and how every context implies a different approach and construction of the same artwork.

His research has positioned him as one of the key thinkers of the 20th century when it comes to color. He has contributed majorly to the possibility of rethinking the relations between artist, spectator, and art, framing them within a participative process rooted exclusively upon the use of color. In 1959 Cruz-Diez began a serial process under titled “Physichromies”, through which he realized the idea of chromatic autonomy and its impact upon the viewer’s environment; one of the results was an important body of work that in later decades surpassed the limits of painting and explored the transformation of diverse spaces through the manipulation of color.

His work emphasizes participation and interaction, spatial perception, and movement as the key elements of the experience of art.