MASTERS IN PARIS

By the end of the nineteenth century, Paris was clearly established as the most important city for the Arts, in Europe and beyond.  Artists flocked to the city to experience the most avant-garde of movements as they rapidly progressed from Realism to Impressionism to Post-Impressionism, followed by twentieth century “isms” that quickly moved from Fauvism to Cubism to Surrealism and Abstractionism.  It is not surprising that many artists from Latin America and the Caribbean traveled to Paris to explore these radical developments and join in the excitement as they created their own work, far different from what was being produced in the conservative, academic milieu at home.  Their journey to Paris was often one-way, as artists chose to remain in Europe, with only occasional trips back to the Americas to maintain a semblance of national identity.  Undoubtedly, the foreign artists also contributed to the Paris art scene, especially if they did stay for the rest of their careers.  Perhaps it was their unique perspective, often steeped in exotic mythology and complex social, political and cultural histories, that helped to distinguish those artists, at home and abroad and, in reverse, fascinate the Parisian art scene as well.

The unique place of France in the story of the Art of Latin America and the Caribbean has long played a role in the collecting expertise of Gary Nader, who in part launched his career as a young man in Paris and decided to bring the artists he saw and met there back to the Americas, to Miami, his home.  As he built his collection and reputation as a gallery dealer representing some of the most important and successful artists from Latin American and Caribbean countries, he realized the role of Paris in their careers and in the new-found recognition for their work on both sides of the Atlantic.  The city played a pivotal role in his collecting direction, and today he continues to give recognition and express his gratitude by showcasing Paris-resident or influenced artists as 80% of his gallery collection.  For years, Nader has paid homage to such great masters as Fernando Botero, Wifredo Lam, Matta, Torres-Garcia, Diego Rivera, Agustin Fernandez, Armando Morales and Agustin Cardenas to name only a few in the Nader Art Museum Latin America (NAMLA).  For each of these artists, their Paris years had a direct impact on the direction of their work.  Whether it be Cubism, Abstraction or Surrealism that informed the course of their artistry, the Paris environment changed their work from the academic to the modern.  The great Geometric and Kinetic Abstractionists, Soto and Cruz Diez, who left Venezuela for Paris and spent their lives there, the theoretical and conceptual constructs that informed the “new” interactive production of art, became part of a major development in Abstraction that influenced an entire generation (and still does).

Nader’s long-time friend and participant in the mission of the gallery to become a premier Museum of Latin American Art, Fernando Botero is the most renowned of the Neo-Realists who has long given credit to his Italian, Dutch, French and Spanish masters as the inspiration for his recognizable style of painting and sculpting monumental objects and personalities.  The list of artists with a Paris connection is long and impressive, and the association with the city may be seen as one of the most significant factors in their artistic development.  However, one must also recognize that in the Nader collection, there are many artists outside of Latin America who have also benefited by the Paris connection: Pablo Picasso, Marc Chagall, Victor Vasarely, Sophia Vari, Lucio Fontana, Soraya Abu Naba’a, Bernar Venet, are among other important Postwar artists represented.  The European experience validated artistic efforts to create their own direction and approach to making art and develop a personal style and Gary Nader has never forgotten his days in Paris.

This exhibition, Masters in Paris, pays tribute to Paris in gratification for the great city’s gifts to the artists and influence on Gary Nader life’s work.

Dr. Carol Damian