Dominican artist Raúl Recio’s landscapes seem almost alive with a kind of magical energy. Dots and lines of paint splash and pulse from the colorful natural elements of the landscapes. As he has said, “As colors mix together, they radiate a feeling, and that feeling comes alive. That’s why my paintings are not looking for an answer or raising a question; the painting itself takes me to that place, which is a landscape.”
Recio’s landscapes are inspired by the lush Dominican countryside, but their bright, almost phosphorescent colors and whimsical forms move them outside of the strict ’landscape’ category. They flirt with abstraction, bringing the viewer’s attention to strictly formal elements such as color and line. At the same time, though, they undeniably depict landscapes; the juxtaposition of these disparate elements results in works that charm the viewer. In spite of their charm, Recio’s works cannot be dismissed as unserious. In fact, Recio has a reputation as one of the most subversive artists of his generation. Within his luscious landscapes are hidden critiques of the tradition of landscape painting and of the local tourism industry. Above all else, his works speak to the issue of place and one’s role within it.
