Manolo Millares

Abstract artist · 1926–1972

Manolo Millares
ContemporáneaArt20th CenturyCulture

Abstract artist

Manolo Millares was an artist born in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria in 1926. He died in Madrid in 1972. A central figure in Spanish Informalism, he promoted LADAC in the Canary Islands and helped create the El Paso group.

Early life

Manuel Millares Sall was born in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria in 1926. The Museo Reina Sofía presents him as a key figure in Spanish Informalism and documents his link to LADAC, Los Arqueros del Arte Contemporáneo, a group promoted in the Canary Islands in 1950.

Historical role

In 1957 he took part in the creation of El Paso, a collective active in Madrid until 1960 and associated with the renewal of postwar Spanish art. His mature work is recognised for stitched, torn or mended burlap, with a palette marked by blacks, whites and reds.

Legacy

CAAM exhibitions stress the material and symbolic dimension of his work: bodies, homunculi, mourning, violence and historical memory appear alongside his interest in the Canarian aboriginal past and in painting with strong expressive force. He died in Madrid in 1972.

Timeline

  1. 1926Manolo Millares is born in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.
  2. 1950He founded LADAC, Los Arqueros del Arte Contemporáneo, in the Canary Islands.
  3. 1957He helped found El Paso, a group central to the renewal of postwar Spanish art.
  4. 1972Manolo Millares dies in Madrid.

Sources and verification