Latin American Art - Constructivist Movement

Constructivist Movement

In general, the artistic Eurocentrism associated with the colonial period began to fade in the early twentieth century as Latin Americans began to acknowledge their unique identity and started to follow their own path.

From the early twentieth century onwards, the art of Latin America was greatly inspired by the Constructivist Movement. The Constructivist Movement was founded in Russia around 1913 by Vladimir Tatlin. It quickly spread from Russia to Europe and then into Latin America. Joaquín Torres García and Manuel Rendón have been credited with bringing the Constructivist Movement from Europe to Latin America.

After a long and successful career in Europe and the United States, Joaquín Torres-García returned to his native Uruguay in 1934, where he heavily promoted Constructivism. Attracting a circle of experienced peers and young artists as followers in Montevideo, in 1935 he founded the Asociación de Arte Constructivo as an art center and exhibition space for his circle. The venue was closed in 1940 due to lack of funding. In 1943 he opened the Taller Torres-García, a workshop and training center that operated until 1962.