Geometric abstraction flourished from the 1930s through the 1970s in the art centers of Latin America, notably Buenos Aires, São Paulo, and Rio de Janeiro. Oiticica, who was based in Rio de Janeiro, experimented with geometric abstraction in the late 1950s. Works in the Metaesquemas series are composed of squares and rectangles, usually against a pale background, reflecting the influence of Kazimir Malevich and Piet Mondrian. Arranged in a gridlike structure but without complete regularity, his shapes seem to rhythmically shift and float slightly off the surface of the paper.

Gallery label from

Geo/Metric: Prints and Drawings from the Collection, June 11–August 18, 2008.

Provenance

The artist.
? - 1997, Projeto Hélio Oiticica, Rio de Janeiro.
1997, The Museum of Modern Art, New York, purchased from Projeto Hélio Oiticica.

Medium Gouache on incised board
Dimensions 18 1/8 x 20 1/2" (46 x 52.1 cm)
Credit Purchased with funds given by Patricia Phelps de Cisneros in honor of Gilberto Chateaubriand
Object number 173.1997
Department Drawings and Prints

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