42 - ANTONI TÀPIES (Barcelona, 1923–2012).

ANTONI TÀPIES (Barcelona, 1923–2012). “Cercle blanc,” 1995. Etching, color aquatint, and silkscreen on paper. Edition 29/45. Work referenced in Núria Homs, *Tàpies Obra Gràfica*, vol. V (1995–2011), 1494. Signed and numbered. Measurements: 33 x 50 cm. Created in 1995, the work features a composition of marked chromatic austerity in which the white circle takes on a central and almost enigmatic presence. Far from functioning merely as a geometric shape, the circle becomes a symbol open to multiple interpretations: an imprint, a space, a void, or a presence. Against the elaborately rendered background, the apparent simplicity of the motif is a hallmark of Tàpies’s artistic language, which is characterized by the richness of textures and gestures. Tàpies took up drawing and painting at a very young age, and during the 1940s he came into contact with the European avant-garde and contemporary thought. In 1948, he was one of the founders of the Dau al Set group. Throughout his career, he held exhibitions around the world, in prominent galleries and museums such as the Guggenheim in New York and the Museum of Modern Art in Paris. His awards include the Prince of Asturias Award, the Praemium Imperiale from the Japan Art Association, the National Culture Award, the Grand Prize for Painting in France, and others, and retrospective exhibitions have been dedicated to him in Tokyo, New York, Rome, Amsterdam, Madrid, Venice, Milan, Vienna, and Brussels. His works are represented in major national and international museums, such as the foundation that bears his name in Barcelona, the Reina Sofía in Madrid, the Guggenheim museums in Berlin, Bilbao, and New York, the Fukuoka Art Museum in Japan, MoMA in New York, and the Tate Gallery in London. Work cited in Núria Homs, *Tàpies Obra Gràfica*, vol. V (1995–2011), p. 1494.