FOUND 2 WEIRD WORKS BY VENEZUELAN ARTIST PEPE LOPEZ

A friend found a lot of … unusual … art in a storage unit he won at auction - he only wanted furniture for his store & sold me these very cheap.

From what I've found he was from Venezuela & moved here to Miami (where I live) 5 or 6 years ago.
When I googled him on my phone I swear I saw that his work had been in the Museum of Modern Art but now I can't find that mention (but found some other exhibitions below)

What do I have here? the one door piece with what looks like colored sand is ok, but the 2 door, steeple shaped diorama(?) is just weird! (from what I read it probably has something to do/say about society?)
Is it something I should send to auction?

Tell me I hit a home run!

Thanks!

https://www.mutualart.com/Artist/Pepe-Lopez/93189D6EA9CA9CB4

https://www.jcmac.art/artists/lopez-pepe/

 

https://www.mutualart.com/Artist/Pepe-Lopez/93189D6EA9CA9CB4/Artworks

 

I'm really confused. Which one has the handwriting on back? If you clarify, I can provide you with info as to what you've got.


Debora

 

Where does it say he moved to miami? Didnt see where it said that in the article.

 

Uh-oh. Pepe López is a pretty common name. After looking at links, these pieces do not appear to be by the Venezuela artist Pepe López. A student I suspect.

Debora

 

I was gonna say as well it resembles a students project but didnt want to be the first one. After searching signatures the signatures are totally different.

 

They used a Nyform Norwegian troll for one of the designs. 1994, must have been pre Ebay...

 

Somehow I like the "altar"

 

I think it might this artist https://www.invaluable.com/auction-...a-20th-21st-c-collage-framed-192-c-26c433da1b
They identify him as Argentinian

 

They are. And I would certainly think student projects.

Debora

 

2nd one that opens like a book Debora

 

Maybe it was his last show was in Miami?

 

That's who I think it is too

 

Um... Don't think so. There's nothing about the above that suggests they're the work of the Venezuelan artist Pepe López. He's a mature, accomplished artist. These appear to be the work of a student. (And the Puerto Rican flag hints that he might be American.)

The first is a retablo. The quote is religious but I can't find a Biblical match. It translates roughly as "The power that the strength of man achieves has been and will be by the work of God."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Retablo

The second is labelled as a folding triptych but, if it opens as a book, it isn't really. It's entitled "Stroke and Texture" and that's stroke in the medical sense, not brush or other.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triptych

Both works are juvenil. Juvenille. From the plaque, the retablo appears to have been presented at or entered into something.

IMHO, their value is in the troll.

Debora

 

I wondered if 25+ years could have allowed him evolve to what he may done from the past, 1966-1994. That Mixed Media example above is from 1994. Especially when I read this excerpt from an art website.

Pepe Lopez (b. 1966, Caracas) is a Venezuelan artist who lives and works in Paris. Lopez works in a variety of mediums, including painting, sculpture, tapestry, collage, photography, video and performance. He has worked on major multidisciplinary projects at institutions such as the Puffin Foundation, New York City; Sala Mendoza and Museo de Bellas Artes, both in Caracas. Lopez’s practice is deeply rooted in the foundations of Latin American abstraction, whilst his process interrogates aspects of contemporary life, such as violence, terrorism, consumerism and identity politics.


However, I agree that the art appears to be different, visually...all-in-all.

https://www.studiointernational.com/index.php/pepe-lopez-crisalida-interview-exile-venezuela

 

The crucifix together with the toy plane echoes the crucified Christ of Leon Ferrari. Latin American contemporary art has its surprises. I would consult with some gallery.

 

Good try but... no.

Debora

 

Check the signature on the back of this and you will see this is the same handwriting. The date of the collage is 1973.
Venezuelan Pepe López would be a child at that time

 

Wow,

That is so interesting.

 

Look at what came after seeing your link...Crazy. Thank you, April07. Good find.
People are art.