Emanuel Torres-Pérez (Aguas Buenas, PR, 1988)

Rich in color and strong gestural shapes, his rhythmic compositions find influence from the Caribbean tradition of abstraction and expressionism [Olga Albizu (1924-2005), Julio Rosado del Valle (1922-2008), Carmelo Fontánez (1945) and Arnaldo Roche (1955)]. Torres generates pictorial abstractions informed by literature, spiritual practices and his reflections over poetic and political themes. By creating abstract metaphorical paintings that use his own country's history, maps and human figure shapes in order to comment and reflect the historical and contemporary dilemmas of the human condition ruled by colonial economies. The relationship between Puerto Rico-U.S.A is a central discussion of his work. Puertorrican landscape, oblivion, memory, routes and changes of everyday life are essential sources of images and reflections for his paintings. Always in search of formal and stylized harmony that ranges from fervent marks to obsessive repetition. Torres belongs to a younger puertorican generation of artists that focus their practice on existential topics in contemporary issues, using mostly caribbean and latinamerican poetry, spiritual and syncretism practices and deep critical commentary on global and local topics to develop complex paintings as complex is life.