Opening of the Exhibition Commemorating the 15th Year of the Central Bank National Painting Award

The BCRA opens the exhibition commemorating the 15th year of the Central Bank National Painting Award at the Kirchner Cultural Center aimed at promoting Argentine contemporary art.

Since the Central Bank National Painting Award was launched in 2007, thirteen thousand artists from all over the country have submitted around 40 thousand works, out of which more than 100 works have been acquired by the BCRA, representing the recent history of visual art in Argentina.

Jorge Carrera and Juan Agustín D’Attellis, Directors of the BCRA; Martín Bonavetti, Undersecretary of Space Management and Special Projects of the Ministry of Culture; Liliana Piñeiro, Head of Planning and Programming of the Kirchner Cultural Center; Rodrigo Alonso, Curator of the exhibition; as well as outstanding artists and prominent cultural figures were present at the event.

“This room hosts the works of great artists. This exhibition brings the general public in contact with a part of the BCRA’s heritage that it treasures and preserves” pointed out Liliana Piñeiro.

In turn, Rodrigo Alonso highlighted the importance of the exhibition by asserting: “This heritage belongs to all Argentinians. It is very important for us to display it in a public place where people will find the works that belong to them.” Then, Martín Bonavetti explained: “For us, every opening is a celebration. For this reason, I want to thank the BCRA's authorities, the members of its staff, and the public as well.”

The Central Bank National Painting Award has received several prizes throughout these 15 years. In 2010, it won the Eikon Award in the sponsorship campaign or cultural sponsorship; in 2017, it was declared of interest by the Ministry of Culture; and in 2018, it received the international distinction in pptArt Patronage in the 21st Century for the sustained promotion of Argentine visual art.

The hundreds of works that make up the BCRA's pictorial collection are part of Argentina's artistic heritage and stand for our culture and identity. Itinerant exhibitions are held every year across Argentina to make the works known, encouraging the relationship between artists and the community and democratizing access to visual culture.

Exhibition

To celebrate the 15th anniversary of the award, the BCRA has organized an exhibition of 40 works from the National Painting Award. The exhibition will be displayed in Room 607 of the Kirchner Cultural Center until November 19, 2023.

The selected works, curated by Rodrigo Alonso, witness the recent history of local painting as well as current painting in the contemporary context. The collection comprises works by renowned artists such as Josefina Robirosa and Liliana Porter and by emerging painters who explore the pictorial art moving forward well into the future along with the broad possibilities unfolded by figuration and abstraction, thus reflecting the diversity of the Argentine art scene.

Artists: Carlos Alonso, Julia Andreasevich, Valentina Ansaldi, Delfina Bourse, Celina Eceiza, Diana Dowek, Alfredo Dufour, Sara Facio, Guadalupe Fernández Santamaría, León Ferrari, Alfredo Frías, Jorge González Perrin, Agustín González Goytía, Silvia Gurfein, María Gimena Herrera, Magdalena Jitrik, Gyula Kosice, Silvana Lacarra, Alfredo Londaibere, Valeria Maggi, Gustavo Marrone, Ad Minolitti, Luis Felipe Noé, Paula Otegui, Margarita Paksa, Diego Perrotta, Liliana Porter, Alfredo Prior, Alejandro Puente, Agustina Quiles, Josefina Robirosa, Tulio de Sagastizábal, Hernán Salamanco, Jorge Sarsale, Marcia Schvartz, Agustín Sirai, Elsa Soibelman, Clorindo Testa, Diego Vergara, Luis Wells, Ana Won.

Exhibition Commemorating the 15th Year of the Central Bank National Painting Award

From October 4, 2023, to November 19, 2023.

Room 607, Kirchner Cultural Center (Sarmiento 151, CABA).

October 4, 2023