Radiante

Radiante conjures a mood—or a temperature—rather than a specific time or place. Olga Albizu rhythmically applied blocks of yellow, orange, and black paint to orchestrate what she called “a conversation between color and form.” The result is a joyous work that bathes the viewer in light.

Albizu was part of a vanguard of artists in Puerto Rico who favored abstraction over figuration or nationalist-inflected themes. After graduating from university, she studied painting in New York, Paris, and Florence before settling in New York in 1946. There, her work became increasingly aligned with abstract expressionism at a time when that movement was defining New York as a new global art center. 

The Latino Art Collection at the Smithsonian American Art Museum represents a deep and continuing commitment to building a great national collection reflecting the rich contributions of Latinos to the United States, from the colonial period to the present. These artworks present a picture of an evolving national culture that challenges expectations of what is meant by the words American and Latino.

Smithsonian American Art Museum: Commemorative Guide. Nashville, TN: Beckon Books, 2015.