Ernesto Ballesteros
Bio
Born in Buenos Aires in 1963, he attended Ernesto Murillo's workshops and the Labardén Institute of Art from a young age. After starting studies in advertising, he enrolled in the “Prilidiano Pueyrredón” School of Fine Arts in 1983 but left in his third year. A versatile artist, he works in drawing, engraving, painting, caricature, installations, and furniture design. His work evolves through different stages. In 1991, his production shifted: conical forms became the basis for figurative-speculative experimentation. Among his numerous projects are exercises based on mathematics and astronomy, minimalist and methodically precise drawings, works using objects made from light bulbs, and interventions on photographs of night skies. He received major awards, including the Grand Prize of Honor for Painting from the National Arts Fund (1986), Telefónica Argentina Award (1996), Leonardo Award for the Young Generation (1998), Alberto J. Trabucco Prize for Drawing (2001), and Kónek Drawing Prize (2012).
Statement
Ballesteros's passion for scientific texts drives his constant experimentation, focusing on the impossible and the immeasurable as central themes. His readings inspire guidelines that structure his process without determining specific visual outcomes. His work delicately records the body's movements, deconstructing graphics through repetitive gestures or "choreographic" movements expressed visually. These actions create regular rhythms that verge on the spiritual. In series like Line Drawn with Eyes Closed... 1749 Intersections (2001), he analyzes results by counting lines or intersections in a futile attempt to measure the Universe. He also explores collectivity with murals, drawings, and group actions, such as pencil races or crafting a yarn ball the size of Earth's circumference.
