Composition symétrique universelle by Joaquín Torres García
A masterful example of synthetic analysis of nature, urban life, and the forms characteristic of Torres García’s production.
Universal Symmetrical Composition in Black and White (1931) by Joaquín Torres GarcíaMALBA – Museo de Arte Latinoamericano de Buenos Aires
From Barcelona to Paris
After living in Barcelona for many years—he had arrived there from Uruguay as a teenager—Joaquín Torres García moved to Paris in 1926 (he would stay on until 1932).
During those fruitful years, the artist’s pictorial vocabulary reached maturity.
Universal Symmetrical Composition in Black and White (1931) by Joaquín Torres GarcíaMALBA – Museo de Arte Latinoamericano de Buenos Aires
Torres García rejected a purely abstract language; he was more interested in work that combined constructive forms and pictographic symbols.
Composition symétrique universelle en blanc et noir is a masterful example of synthetic analysis of nature, urban life, and the forms characteristic of Torres García’s production.
Universal Symmetrical Composition in Black and White (1931) by Joaquín Torres GarcíaMALBA – Museo de Arte Latinoamericano de Buenos Aires
The compositional surface is divided into spaces bound in a perfectly harmonic relationship to express a sense of wholeness
the symmetrical and monochromatic structure is brimming with pictographic symbols and schematic figures.
Universal Symmetrical Composition in Black and White (1931) by Joaquín Torres GarcíaMALBA – Museo de Arte Latinoamericano de Buenos Aires
Composition symétrique universelle... addressed the three pillars of “universal constructivism”: reason and intellect; spirit and life; and the natural world
The balance between visual elements in compartments and orthogonal divisions provides Torres García with a systematic way to join both sides of the duality between abstract and concrete forms.
Universal Symmetrical Composition in Black and White (1931) by Joaquín Torres GarcíaMALBA – Museo de Arte Latinoamericano de Buenos Aires
The universal constructivism
This research path led him towards “universal constructivism”, in which a work exists as the concrete materialization of an idea defined according to its own order and internal rhythms.
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