Brazilian artist Montez Magno (Timbaúba, 1934), the Mexican duo Lake Verea, formed by Francisca Rivero-Lake Cortina (Mexico City, 1973_) and Carla Verea Hernández (Mexico City, 1978), have been awarded the Latin American Photography Acquisition Prize "Purificación García", given during the Zona MACO Contemporary Art Fair held in Mexico City last April.
Intending to open up her photographic collection to new frontiers, Purificación García called for entries to this Acquisition Prize, with a $10,000 award and open to all artists of Latin American origin or residing in the region who participated in this prestigious fair.
The acquisition committee for the Prize was composed of Celia Sredni de Birbragher, publisher and editor of ArtNexus Magazine, Osvaldo Sanchez, curator and art critic, and Rosana A. Agrelo, in charge of the Purificación García photographic collection.
Montz Magno enters the Purificación García collection with Um Lance de Dados (1973). Magno's work explores rhythms, combinatories, fragmentations, meters, and synthesis, conjoining a variety of artistic languages. In this delicate vintage work, the photographic image combines with draftsmanship and writing with a nod to the concept of chance, to which we are inescapably subject. With this acquisition, the Purificación García Collection opens its doors to Latin American conceptual photography of the 1970s, a singularly interesting movement that, without a doubt, will enrich the collection's discourse.
Lake Verea received the award for two works in their series Sr. Arq. Luis Barragán Morfin Cadilac Coupe 1957, which portraits the great master of Mexican architecture through his automobile. Barragán owned a Cadillac Coupe de Ville from 1957 until his death in 1988. Lake Verea discovered this fact while they were documenting Barragán's work for an exhibition.
Purificación García's relationship with photography began in tandem with her earliest collecting, and it has evolved over time alongside her own creative development. The "Purificación García" Biennial Prize emerged nine years ago from her commitment to the medium, and it is open to artists residing in Spain and Portugal with the intention of celebrating established figures and discovering new talent. The Latin American Photography Acquisition Prize was established in 2011 with the goal of opening the collection to new creative horizons.