JOSÉ ANTONIO ARAUJO (Venezuela, 1968).
"Green Sunday with Boston Terrier", 2017.
Assemblage of wood and polychrome iron.
Signed and dated on the base.
Measurements: 71 x 46 x 18 cm.
José Antonio's figures or silhouettes explore shapes and textures, converse with the observer, adopting different poses, always well dressed in different elements or materials. They are assemblages of wood, he innovates with metals, of worn shapes and textures, taking advantage of his anomalies that combine enigma, illusion, realism, sophistication. Thus, Araujo's sculptural work could be placed today in the technique or method of assemblage. Araujo's sculptures, or as he himself calls them, his ladies or meninas, lead him to a reencounter with texture and matter, and even without disassociating himself from figuration, Araujo reinvents and renews the meninas, he falls in love with them, He dares to redesign their attire, he assembles modern clothes, hairstyles and accessories, he gives them colour and textures, he modernises their habits, tastes and customs, he even gets the Meninas to entrust him with their pets. The Meninas have so far been the most prolific and dedicated stage of the artist's career. The evolution, design, renovation and transformation of the Meninas is truly surprising and captivating. Araujo has reinvented and assembled these royal characters, from the classical to the daring and contemporary, from the simple to the sophisticated, from the figurative to the three-dimensional, from the small to the large.
José Antonio Araujo is a contemporary Venezuelan artist who lives and works in Caracas, Venezuela, and has devoted himself to sculpture for more than 20 years. Araujo began as a clay caricaturist, or as he calls himself a "barricaturist".
Araujo is a faithful follower of the artwork of great exponents such as Henry Moore and Lynn Chadwick, he feels a special admiration for the French-Venezuelan artist Marisol Escobar and others, especially the Spanish artists Diego Velázquez, Eduardo Chillida and Manolo Valdés.