Jesus Rafael Soto

Jesus Rafael Soto (1923-2005) was the Venezuelan master of optical
art, beginning his masterpieces in this form in the 1960's. He called
these works "Penetrables," as though one could lose oneself inside
them.

He was born in Ciudad Bolivar and studied at the Escuela de Artes
Plásticas in Caracas. Along with Carlos Cruz-Diez and Ruben Nuñez, he
became a member of the Taller de Arte Libre de Caracas.

In 1950 he moved to Paris, where he participated in exhibitions at the
Salon des Realités Nouvelles. He has shown in many galleries in Paris, Santa Fe, Miami, and New York, as well as in exhibitions at the
Guggenheim in New York, the Houston Museum of Fine Arts, and the
Contemporary Art Museum of Chicago. He has won prizes at the Sao Paulo and Venice Biennials, and was awarded the National French Award for Sculpture in 1997.