José Vivenes

(1977, Maturín, Venezuela) is a young and captivating painter who was born in eastern Venezuela and now lives on the coast just outside of Caracas. Vivenes is part of an emerging generation of painters currently working in Venezuela.

He graduated with honors in Fine Art from the Armando Reverón Fine Arts University Institute before carrying out a Diploma in Western Art at the Metropolitan University in Caracas, which he finished in 2009. His work involves both painting and sculpture and is highly tactile in nature.

It is characterized by its often rough textures and sombre palette. Vivenes delves into an imaginary of melancholy figures or solitary objects that he rescues from oblivion to create works, which privilege elements from daily life to make them protagonists on his canvases.

Since 2001, he has participated in numerous solo and group exhibitions in Venezuela and has received important awards, such as the Mario Abreu prize in the 2002 and 2008 National Art Contests in Aragua, Venezuela, and the Eladio Alemán Sucre prize at the 63 Arturo Michelena Art Contest in 2006, Venezuela’s most important competition.

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