After obtaining the First Prize in the V Biennial of Young Artists in Paris, Venezuelan-born Francisco Salazar relocated to France where he continues to live and work since 1967. Salazar introduced the Positive-Negative series in the Centro Venezolano Americano of Caracas (CVA) in 1966, raising the matter on his unseen kinetic thesis. This important survey of 36 Positive-Negative works, was again displayed at the Museo de Bellas Artes in Caracas (MBA) in 1967, placing Salazar in the center of the visual arts community as an artist with his own language in the field of optic-kinetic art.

The optical phenomenon proposed by Salazar is based on the play of light – positive and negative – produced by the meticulous treatment of corrugated cardboard. Triggered by light, the delicate nuances on Salazar’s white monochromes overlap in the viewer’s eyes, activating a subtle retinal vibration that can only be described as kinetic poetry. This exquisite piece is truly unique due to the uncommon circular shapes, rather than the artist’s typically linear compositions.

Anabela Mendoza