Julio Le Parc Argentinian, b. 1928

After studying at the School of Fine Arts in Buenos Aires under Lucio Fontana, Julio Le Parc (b. 1928, Argentina)  went to Paris in 1958 on a scholarship where he connected with Jesús Rafael Soto, Carlos Cruz-Diez, Victor Vasarely and Georges Vantongerloo. Inspired by these artists he and François Morellet co-founded the optical-kinetic artist collective G.R.A.V. (The Visual Art Research Group) in 1960. Inspired by Piet Mondrian and Contructivism and rejecting Abstract Expressionism, the group examined the visual spectrum, movement, light through scientific and technological theories and media.

In 1960 Le Parc moved into three-dimensional Kinetic art, creating his first reliefs and 'Continual Mobiles', introducing movement and light, creating a visceral, multi-sensory experience for the viewer. Playful and joyous, Le Parc aimed to break down the boundaries between art and the viewer through perceptually illusory paintings, sculptures, and immersive installations, creating a collaboration between the spectator and the artist. 

Le Parc’s first solo exhibition was held at the Howard Wise Gallery, New York in 1966 and was awarded the main painting prize at the 1966 Venice Biennale which was followed by his first retrospective exhibition, held at the Instituto Di Tella in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 1967. Subsequently Le Parc has had numerous retrospective exhibitions in major museums in Havana, Düsseldorf, Caracas, Mexico City, Stockholm, Berlin, Madrid, Barcelona, and Santiago de Chile. His most recent solo exhibitions were held at the Palais de Tokyo in Paris in 2013, Casa Daros in Rio de Janeiro, 2014, and the Museo de Arte Latinoamericano de Buenos Aires in 2014.

Julio Le Parc lives and works in Cachan, France.