Julio Larraz

A retrospective on the life and art of this renowned Cuban-American artist, acclaimed for his refined and thought-provoking paintings with fantastical, Surrealist overtones.
 

One of the most important contemporary painters to emerge from Latin America, Julio Larraz (b. 1944, Havana) creates powerful, dreamlike paintings that reflect the influence of painters from Velázquez to Sargent and Hopper, and Surrealist artists like Dalí and Magritte. A unique visionary, Larraz produces work that has been described by some as mind-bending and playful, using a refreshingly wide range of subjects from still life to Cuban cultural imagery, such as bullfights, men in white linen suits, and maritime scenes. He reveals imaginary worlds, with deeply satirical, ambiguous, and multilayered themes, in which he often alludes to political corruption, class structure, and human foibles.
 
This is the largest and most comprehensive book to date, with 200 paintings, 50 works on paper, and 10 sculptures, ranging from the 1960s to the present, accompanied by an essay by David Ebony that situates Larraz’s work within the Latin American painting tradition.
 David Ebony is a Contributing Editor of Art in America and a frequent contributor to Artnet News and Yale University Press online, among other publications. Ariel Larraz is Executive Director of the Julio Larraz Foundation.