Author Description

This volume documents the first U.S. solo exhibition of Colombian-born, London-based artist Oscar Murillo (born 1986), held at the Rubell Family Collection in Florida in 2013. Over the course of a five-week residency in the summer of 2012, Murillo took over a 60-foot space at the Rubell, as well as its sculpture garden, to create 32 works, including five massive paintings, all of which are reproduced here. These works were informed by Murillo's exposure to Miami's Latin culture, as well as a weekend visit to his native Colombia and the gigantic proportions of the exhibition space itself. Two of the largest works are abstract; three are inscribed with words evoking colonial and/or Western appropriation ("mango," "chorizo" and "yoga"); all display the heavily worked surfaces for which Murillo is well known. Also included here is photo documentation of the exhibition's preparation and an interview with the artist.