Rufino Tamayo (1899-1991). “”Mixografia”” in colors on Arches, signed in white pencil along the lower right, titled “”Constelaciones”” 1977. Numbered 77/100 along the lower left.

Biography:
Rufino Tamayo was one of the leading Mexican artists of the 20th century. He combined his interests in modernist painting and pre-Columbian Mexican art to create a unique style that was both artistically cutting-edge and grounded in cultural traditions. Tamayo was born in Oaxaca in 1899. He studied art at the School of Fine Arts in Mexico City. Following this education, he became the director of the ethnographic drawings department of the National Museum of Archaeology, which strengthened his interest in pre-Columbian traditional art, which was already an interest of his due to the prevalent artistic traditions in Oaxaca. In 1936, he moved to New York City, where he taught at the Dalton School and the Brooklyn Museum. While in New York, Tamayo was influenced by artists such as Picasso, Braque and Matisse, and began experimenting with styles such as Cubism, Expressionism and Surrealism. However, he continued to be connected to his roots by his subject matter, which he drew from Mexican folk traditions and pre-Columbian themes, creating images, particularly still lifes, unlike anything else being created at that time.
Throughout his long career, he migrated between New York and Mexico City, continuing to blend the artistic traditions of both places into his own individual style. He gained fame over time, in part for his pointed rejection of the political muralist style which dominated the Mexican art scene in the early 20th century. His work was displayed internationally and won many awards. Along with creating art, he collected many works of art, both European and Mexican, particularly pre-Columbian, which he and his wife donated to the citizens of Mexico, where they became the basis for two major museums, the Museum of Pre-Hispanic Mexican Art in Oaxaca and the Rufino Tamayo Museum of International Contemporary Art in Mexico City. He continued to work until the age of 90, experimenting and adding new components, such as sand, without sacrificing the careful technicality which characterized his work.
In “”Galaxia,”” Tamayo used the technique of ìmixografia,? a printmaking technique he pioneered with the Rembas family at their lithography workshop in Mexico City, Taller de Gr·fica Mexicana. When Tamayo began his collaboration with them in 1973, he was searching for a way to include a textural element, which had become an integral part of his paintings, into his prints. They developed a technique which used a highly textured plate and still-wet paper pulp to create prints with textural elements and vibrant color. “”Galaxia”” shows the successful results of this new technology. The vibrant evening sky, the topography of the surface of the moon, and the contours of the dark ground all come to life with Tamayoís technical mastery and innovation.Sight; height: 19 3/4 in x width: 46 1/2 in. Framed; height: 21 3/4 in x width: 49 in.