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Jorge Blanco Delbugio, Uruguay Artist, Modern Latin Minimalist

Jorge Blanco Delbugio is a Modern Latin Minimalist from Uruguay. He has exhibited in the United States, but frequently signs his work “Blanco” which then becomes confused with the other Latin American artist Jorge Blanco, who is known as a sculptor with a great internet presence.

Blanco Delbugio is highly influenced by Universal Constructivism that was introduced by the Uruguayan artist Joaquin Torres-Garcia. Torres-Garcia developed an artistic style that combined geometric shapes with pictographs that created meaning to the viewer. Torres-Garcia brought this style back to his home country in the 1930s from time spent in Spain, France and Italy, as well as New York City.

After World War II Latin artists were beginning to be influenced by modern geometric abstraction concepts in design and artistry. In 2007, North America celebrated Latin America’s love for these artistic concepts with a traveling exhibit that featured artists and designers from all the major South American cities including Uruguay’s capital, Montevideo. The exhibit - “Geometry of Hope” covered Latin American geometric art from the 1930s to the 70s. Unfortunately the curator for this noted exhibit overlooked Blanco Delbugio.

Without being a Latin American art expert, you can easily identify Blanco Delbugio’s artwork. The elements of geometry math class meets color theory; from a math class perspective there are rectangles, squares, triangles, circles, semi-circles, spheres combined with basic colors that are shaded. Each angular element is interrupted or overlapped by another geometric shape distinguished by color. All of these shapes and colors rehearse tension in the composition creating a three-dimensional sensory that extinguishes the flatness of the canvas; best described as perfect vibrating asymmetry. 
"Mood Indigo" 2001
Acrylic on Canvas, 35 X46 Inches
Signed Blanco, LRC
In his painting, “Mood Indigo” that was included in the “From Uruguay - Abstract Art” exhibit at the Uruguayan Embassy, Washington, DC, 2002, Blanco Delbugio works to reflect those elements. There were ten of his paintings included in the exhibit and two that were photographed and reproduced in the accompanying exhibit catalogue; beyond “Mood Indigo” the other painting was titled: “Composition with Warheads”. In both of those paintings he uses basic red, white, blue with a black background, he stipples the colored shapes with dark overtones. Again, he uses his stippling brush work to trick the eye, it appears like there is very tiny textured graffiti on the canvas, yet upon close inspection the texture is very flat. It is as if he took his canvas with thick paint and ran it through two heavy rollers to flatten out the acrylic paint, creating a flat uniform surface.

Another element in his work includes an almost mathematical precision, as if he used a compass, straight edges and triangles to draw the composition. Clearly these elements are reflective of his graphic design/advertising schooling and background. Blanco Delbugio’s work is so pure and formalist, that to suggest it is abstraction seems almost inaccurate. Yet, his genius consists of his ability to create geometric shapes that become optical patterns with a skittering textural energy that slides into Modern Latin Minimalism.

Documentation: 
Jorge Blanco Delbugio was born in 1948 in Montevideo, where he still lives: From 1963 to 1965 he studied “Drawing for Advertising”. 1966 to 1969 he studied Drawing and Painting at the Art School of Work, University of Uruguay, at the same time, same school he also studied linear drawing and color theory. During 1968 -1971 he was part of the group that was commanded by renowned Uruguayan artist Lincoln Presno in the creation of five large murals in the gardens of the Uruguayan Congress in Montevideo.

Main Group Shows: 1971 to 1975 Salon Municipal; 1972 -1973 Salon Nacional; 1971 to 1974 Salon Cámara Junior de Salto; 1973 Vanguard of Uruguayan Art at the Van Riel Art Gallery in Buenos Aires, Argentina; 1974 Uruguayan Artists - Nowadays, Homage to Joaquin Torres Garcia, organized by the Organization of American States; 25 Artistas de Hoy, Alianza Uruguay-Estados Unidos; 1994 and 1998 Bienal de Primavera de Salto; 2000 Uruguayan Art, Exploris Museum, North Carolina, and Museo de las Américas, San Juan, Puerto Rico; Woman’s National Democratic Club, Washington, DC; Contemporary Artists from Uruguay, Eklektikos Art Gallery, Washington, DC; 2001 Group Show at the Embassy of Uruguay Washington, DC; 2002, Uruguayan Art at the Cultural Centers of Uruguayos en Japón’ en Centro Cultural ‘Susonoshi Bunka Senta’, Ciudad de Susono, Japón (Susono Shi Bunka Senta Susono City and Gotemba Shimin Kaikan Gotemba City in Japan).

Solo Shows: 1996, Hall of Uruguayan Congress Building, 1997 Museo del Gaucho la Moneda, Montevideo; 1998 Museo R. Francisco Mazzoni, Maldonado City.

His work is in different collections such as: Museo Municipal Juan Manuel Blanes, Uruguay; Art Collection of the Uruguayan Congress, Museo del Gaucho y la Moneda, Uruguay; Uruguay Cultural Foundation for the Arts, Washington, DC; He is a founder member of the Uruguay Cultural Foundation for the Arts, he is a member of APEU (Asociación de Pintores y Escultores del Uruguay) he has received honors and awards in XIX Salon Municipal de Artes Plasticas, of the Comisión Nacional de Artes Plásticas y Visuales, Salón del Club Naval.  Permanent Exhibition of his work in (www.arteuy.co.uy).  He has also served as an art instructor at the college level.  

Research References: 
  • Smith, Roberta, Abundant Straight Lines, All Ahead Of the Curve, New York Times, Friday, Sept. 14, 2007. Review of an art exhibit - “The Geometry of Hope: Latin American Abstract Art From the Patricia Phelps de Cisneros Collection” at Grey Art Gallery at New York University.
  • Fernandez Faingold, Hugo (Author) and Abbondanza, Jorge (Exchange Coordinator), "From Uruguay-Abstract Art: Osman Astesiano, Jorge Blanco, Eduardo Espino, Sergio Viera" - Uruguay Cultural Foundation for the Arts, September 2002, Exhibit Catalogue.
  • Blanco Delbugio, Jorge, Instagram Website; Critiques, Art Professor CV, Exhibits and examples of artwork.
Attached Articles:
  • Mayling Carro Amorin, Exposicion de Jeorge Blanco, Suplemento Platea del diario, La Manana - Marzo 1998.
  • Ignacio Olmedo, Recibimos y Publicamos, Sobre la obra de Jorge Blanco.
  • Elisa Roubaud, Espone Jorge Blanco.


Quote from Blanco Delbugio:

"I think that a work is the product of two states of mind, that of the artist when making it and that of the viewer when seeing it, that is why I accept all opinions that are expressed with respect." Apr. 4, 24

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©2024. Waller-Yoblonsky Fine Art is a research collaborative, working to track artists that got lost and overlooked due to time, changing styles, race, gender and/or sexual orientation. Our frequent blogs highlight artists and art movements that need renewed attention with improved information for the researcher and art collectors. The photos and blog was created by Mr. Waller and all written materials were obtained by the Fair Use Section 107, of The Copyright Act.  Special thanks goes out to Jorge Blanco Delbugio and his sharing his information on Instagram.com -  #waller-yoblonskyblogspot #walleryoblonskyblogspot #JorgeBlanco #JorgeBlancoDelbugio #Uruguayart #jorgeblancouruguay  #JorgeBlancoDelbugio1948




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