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Under the direction of Cecilia De Torres
Assisted by Susanna V. Temkin, Madeline Murphy Turner, and Victoria L. Fedrigotti
Catalogue Entry
1942.10 (estate: 1037)
Idea
Alternate title: Representación de la Idea
c.1942
Oil on wood
44 x 4 1/2 in. (111.5 x 11.5 cm)
Signed verso: J. Torres-GARCIA
This third figure from the artist's Amerindian Theogony series, represents the spirit, and is perhaps a combination of 'Viracocha the Creator' [an Incan god] and the 'Nous' as defined by Plotinus. (Cecilia de Torres in Abstraction: The Amerindian Paradigm, p. 254).
Private collection
Provenance
Estate of the artist
Manolita Piña de Torres-García, Montevideo
Private collection
Exhibitions
1959 Museo Torres-García
Museo Torres-García, Montevideo, Uruguay, March 1959, no. 23, as Representación de la Idea.1970 The National Gallery of Canada
The National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Joaquín Torres García 1874-1949, October 2–November 1, 1970, no. 82, ill., p. 110. Traveled to: The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, December 12, 1970–January 31, 1971; Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, February 16–March 31, 1971.1987 Indianapolis Museum of Art
Indianapolis Museum of Art, Indiana, Art of the Fantastic: Latin America, 1920-1987, July 28–September 13, 1987, ill., p. 83. Traveled to: The Queens Museum, Flushing, New York, October 10–December 6, 1987; Center for Art, Miami, January 15–March 4, 1988; Centro Cultural/Arte Contemporáneo, Mexico City, March 25–May 2, 1988.1991 The University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin, Archer M. Huntington Galleries, Texas, El Taller Torres-García-The School of the South and Its Legacy, September–December 1991, no. 21, ill., p. 103. Traveled to: Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia, Madrid, June–August 1991; Museo de Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico, January–April 1992; The Bronx Museum, New York, September 1992–January 10, 1993; Museo Rufino Tamayo, Mexico City, February–May 1993.2002 Musée d'Art Moderne et Contemporain de Strasbourg
Musée d'Art Moderne et Contemporain de Strasbourg, France, Joaquín Torres-García: un monde construit, May 24–September 8, 2002, ill., p. 222. Traveled to: Museo Colecciones ICO, Madrid, October 22, 2002–January 6, 2003 (Joaquín Torres-García: un mundo construido).2005 IVAM
Institut Valencià d'Art Modern (IVAM) Centre Julio González, Valencia, Spain, El fuego bajo las cenizas (de Picasso a Basquiat), May 5–August 28, 2005.2005–06 Musée Maillol
Musée Maillol, Fondation Dina Vierny, Paris, Le feu sous les cendres, de Picasso à Basquiat, October 8, 2005–February 13, 2006, ill., p. 52.2018 Acquavella Galleries
Acquavella Galleries, New York, The Worlds of Joaquín Torres-García, April 12–May 25, 2018, plate 69, ill., p. 205, as Representación de la Idea.Published References
Jardí 1973
Jardí, Enric. Joaquín Torres-García. Barcelona: Polígrafa, 1973, ill. p. 226, no. 333.Museo Español de Arte Contemporáneo 1973
Exposición Antológica Torres-García. Madrid: Museo Español de Arte Contemporáneo, 1973. Exhibition catalogue, ill. p. 33.Vernazza 1973a
Vernazza, Eduardo. "Los 99 años de J.Torres García: Exposición en el Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Madrid." El Día, July 29, 1973, ill.Relaciones 1986
revista al tema del hombre (Montevideo), no. 22 (March 1986), ill. p. 1.Braun 1993
Braun, Barbara. "Joaquín Torres-García: The Alchemical Grid." In Pre-Columbian Art and the Post-Columbian World, Ancient American Sources of Modern Art. New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1993, ill. p. 280.Maslach 1998
Maslach, Adolfo. Joaquín Torres-García: sol y luna del arcano. Caracas: UNESCO, 1998, ill. detail p. 579, no. 375.de Torres 2001
de Torres, Cecilia. "Pilgrimage to the sources of Amerindian art." In Abstraction: the Amerinidian Paradigm. Brussels: Societé des Expositions du Palais des Beaux Arts, 2001. Exhibition catalogue, ill. p. 255, fig. 11.Gradowczyk 2007
Gradowczyk, Mario H. Torres-García: Utopía y Transgresión. Montevideo: Fundación Torres-García, 2007. Exhibition catalogue, ill. p. 124, no. 4.39. .Fundación Caixa Girona 2008
Fundación Caixa Girona. Torres-García Darrere la màscara constructiva. Girona, 2007. Exhibition catalogue, ill. p. 28, fig. 10.Sanchez Vidal 2012
Sanchez Vidal, Agustin. Joaquín Torres-García. Madrid: Fundacio MAPFRE Instituto de Cultura, 2012, ill. p. 33.Record last updated July 20, 2023. Please note that the information on this and all pages is periodically reviewed and subject to change.
Citation: de Torres, Cecilia, Susanna V. Temkin, Madeline Murphy Turner, and Victoria L. Fedrigotti. "Idea, c.1942 (1942.10)." In Joaquín Torres-García Catalogue Raisonné. www.torresgarcia.com/catalogue/entry.php?id=1843 (accessed on April 20, 2025).