Hutchinson Modern & Contemporary (HM&C) is pleased to announce José Gurvich: Sense of Place, an exhibition of works by Lithuanian-born Uruguayan artist José Gurvich (1927-1974). An online Study Room at Hutchinsonmodern.com will accompany the show, offering an in- depth exploration of Gurvich’s artistic practice.
Sense of Place is the first exhibition of Gurvich’s work at HM&C. On view will be paintings, ceramic sculptures, and works on paper that Gurvich created throughout his career. Together, these pieces offer a glimpse into the artist’s travels around the globe, while elaborating on his enduring engagement with themes including Jewish tradition and religion, and genres including the still life, landscape, portraiture, and abstraction.
Gurvich is known for his connection to the Taller Torres-García (TTG), which he joined in 1944 at the age of sixteen. While early paintings and drawings demonstrate his initial adherence to the precepts of TTG and Constructive Universalism, Gurvich’s practice grew to encompass an impressive array of subjects, mediums, and modes of representation. The present exhibition explores Gurvich’s work in relation to four distinct geographies that both influenced and were impacted by the artist: Montevideo, Europe, Israel, and New York City. Gurvich resided in all of these places—some for a matter of months, and others for years. While each cultural context visibly impacted the artist’s output, Gurvich also carried a strong sense of place within himself, bringing his unique set of cultural roots, beliefs, and symbols to each geography he inhabited.
Gurvich’s work can be found in the collections of prominent institutions such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; the Denver Art Museum, Colorado; the Princeton University Art Museum, New Jersey; the Blanton Museum, Austin; the Museum of Latin American Art, Long Beach (MOLAA); the Museo de Arte Latinoamericano de Buenos Aires (MALBA); the Museo Nacional de Artes Visuales, Montevideo; and the Museo de Bellas Artes, Caracas.
