For Eduardo Mac Entyre, the circumference was the template upon which he constructed a universe of forms that was enriched with infinite variations throughout his artistic career. In 1960, together with Miguel Ángel Vidal, he presented the first exhibition of generative art at the Peuser Gallery and signed the manifesto whose aesthetic program emphasized the vibrations provoked by the displacement of a form in space. From that moment on, the treatment of color and the exaltation of luminosity were two pillars upon which his generative paintings and his optical-kinetic experiences were based. The exhibition at the Palatina Gallery features paintings, kinetic boxes, and drawings. From his early work, in which he favored symmetrical compositions, the Polyptych (Transformable) (1973–1975) is on display.

 

This piece presents a mandala-like form painted on a flat background and is made up of seven modules that allow for varying presentation. as well as two works from the Totem Series: Homage to Caracas (1975) and Totemic Form (1985), in which the power of the linear and light interplay is concentrated in the central strip of the work. These works reflect his interest in working with optical effects, given that the painted linear patterns generate a rhythmic sequence that impacts the retina and provokes the perception of vibratory movements. Within these same pursuits, he later developed a phase based on asymmetry, represented in this exhibition by the paintings Contraposition on Gray (1980), Untitled (1985), and Generation of Spaces (1995).

 

These paintings are made up of large segments of circles whose centers are located outside the pictorial field. Consequently, the linear patterns that intervene in the composition intersect, multiplying the possibilities for variation. With these off-center designs, she also made black and white drawings, such as the one presented beneath a grooved glass that enhances the vibratory effects; a work she titled Curves in Space (1983). Cristina Rossi