Intersections (after Lautréamont)

This catalogue accompanies the 2015 Grants & Commissions Exhibition at the CIFO Art Space in Miami, Florida, titled Intersections (After Lautréamont). The bilingual (English & Spanish) book is a visual presentation concentrating on the 10 awarded artists from Latin America consisting of:

• Opening text by CIFO's Director & Chief Curator, Eugenio Valdés Figueroa

• Text by internationally renowned artist and academic Luis Camnitzer

• Artist biographies

• Conversations/interviews with the 10 awarded artists

• Images of previous works

• Installation photography of the 10 projects at the CIFO Art Space

About the exhibition (Sept. 3 – Nov. 1, 2015):

The title of the exhibition, Intersections (after Lautréamont), “refers to the notion of beauty and how, during each era, art is responsible for reformulating, subverting, and/or proposing alternative ways of understanding beauty. There is no single criteria in the exhibition, opening spaces for tense intersections, armed with both correspondence and friction,” says Valdés Figueroa, “Placing the questions raised by the works of this year’s winners through the prism of this new juncture in the city that hosts them, could produce moments of estrangement, disturbing crossroads, poetic collisions. That is already an initial point of convergence, among other possible intersections offered by this exhibition: on one hand, the changes produced in the Miami scene in relation to Latin America; on the other hand, the wide range of concerns that occupy the award-winning artists.”

The mission of CIFO’s Grants & Commissions Program is to bestow ten Latin American artists with grants: six grants for emerging artists, three grants for mid-career artists, and a special award for one established artist. These grants are given directly to the winners, thus providing them with greater flexibility to develop their work. Artists are nominated by the Advisory Committee, composed of recognized art professionals, curators, and artists from Latin America, the United States, and Europe. Following a rigorous review process by the Selection Committee, the finalists are approved by the Board of Directors. CIFO’s Grants & Commissions Program, has supported during the past twelve editions over one hundred artists, resulting in a significant boost for the majority of their careers.

Awarded artist:
Achievement Award: Leandro Katz (Argentina)

Mid-career Award: Silvia Gruner (Mexico), Alice Miceli (Brazil), Pablo Vargas Lugo (Mexico)

Emergent Artist Award: Iván Argote (Colombia), Domingo Castillo (USA), Javier Castro (Cuba), Nascimento/Lovera (Venezuela), Naufus Ramírez-Figueroa (Guatemala), Adrían Balseca (Ecuador)