The Evolution of a Figurative Vision
Ernesto Deira was an Argentine artist who played a pivotal role in the Nueva Figuración movement. Alongside Jorge de la Vega, Rómulo Macció, and Luis Felipe Noé, he co-founded the Otra Figuración group in 1961. This collective sought to reintroduce figurative art to Argentinian culture, moving away from both abstraction and traditional representation. Deira’s own artistic journey was marked by a transition from studying law at the Universidad de Buenos Aires to pursuing art under the guidance of Leopoldo Torres Agüero and Leopoldo Presas. His work eventually led him to Paris, where he spent the later part of his life.
Style and Symbolic Expression
Deira’s aesthetic was characterized by an expressive, linear, and often grotesque style. He utilized a variety of techniques, including free brushwork, drip techniques, and thick, urgent brushstrokes that created a sense of movement. His palette frequently featured bold colors such as red, black, blue, and yellow. His subjects often appeared as distorted, vaguely human figures, sometimes presented in single portraits or as larger groups. In his 1971 series titled Identifications, he created seven paintings mirroring tragic political events in Latin America, Vietnam, and Bangladesh. These works were hidden to preserve them during the military regime in Chile before being returned to Argentina in 2020.
