Rafael Canogar Seguir artista +

Rafael Canogar (Toledo, 1935) is a key figure in the History of Contemporary Art as a founding member of the El Paso group (1957-1960) and a pioneer and representative of various artistic styles.
From a very young age, his aptitude for drawing and oil painting made him a disciple of Vázquez Díaz and, after abandoning his studies in 1948, he devoted himself to studying the great painters of his time, such as Braque, Picasso and Miró. In its first phase, it embraces informalism with a heavy material burden.
In the 1950s, he began exhibiting solo in Spain and soon also in Paris and several Italian cities. Success and critical acclaim followed him to the Binears in Venice and Alexandria and exhibitions in Barcelona, ​​Brussels, New York, and Rome. The atmosphere of encounters with national and international painters and critics inspired him to join other young artists to create a common space in contemporary Spanish art, breaking the isolation in which national artistic research was struggling. This is how the El Paso group emerged, which, despite being active for only three years, completely changed the cultural landscape of the time and was responsible for countless exhibitions, publications, and other projects. The group's latest exhibition, organized by Canogar at his Roman gallery, L'Attico, features Chirino, Feito, Millares, Rivera, Saura, and Viola.