NEW IN TR BOOKSHOP: JORGE CAMACHO (1979) - First edition of this great hard cover monograph on self-taught Cuban surrealist painter, Jorge Camacho. Heavy illustrated throughout with his stunning drawings and paintings, including a series of illustrations inspired by Satie's Gnossiennes. Includes writings by Camacho and Carlos Franquai in English, Catalan, Spanish, French; a chronology, list of works and bibliography. Hard linen covers in original illustrated dust jacket. - Born in 1934 in Havana (Cuba), in 1952, Jorge Camacho abandons his law studies and begins painting, driven by an inner strength that still remains for him mysterious. Camacho's first major influence was the Wilfredo Lam exhibit at the University of Havana in 1955. In Mexico, in 1959, he meets the painter Jose Luis Cuevas, with whom he begins a long journey to the sources of pre-Columbian cultures (Teotihuacan, Olmec, Maya, Aztec) that defines a new direction in his painting. He had two exhibitions in Havana, in 1955 and 1958, before moving to Paris in 1959. Once in Paris, Camacho immediately adopted Surrealism and in 1960 had a show at Galerie Raymond Cordier. Camacho met surrealist poet André Breton during an exhibit of works by Toyen in 1961- his meeting with Breton truly tied him to the Surrealist movement. This exhibit also served as the setting for a 1962 event with the surrealist group, where he created an antireligious tribute to Oscar Panizza that featured aggressive paintings, including L'Immaculée conception des Papes. André Breton wrote a preface to Camacho's 1964 exhibition at the Galerie Mathias Fels, describing his work as a painting of cruelty. Camacho's works, with their claw-like forms laden with ossuaries, borrowed their harsh themes from novels by Sade and Bataille. The rich influence of Central and South America truly sets Camacho's painting apart from the European Surrealists, his paintings haunted by the ibijau, a bird he observed on a trip to Venezuela (Camacho was fascinated with ornithology), the landscapes of Peru, and the magical and hermetic societies throughout ancient Latin America. - One copy via our website and in the bookshop. - #worldfoodbooks #jorgecamacho (at WORLD FOOD BOOKS)
