Bernardo Palombo
Cantos del Arte
This selection of works by Bernardo Palombo, El Taller's Founder and Artistic Director for its first 45 years, is intended to inspire viewers to be courageous innovators in their lives, as he was.
Palombo's artwork is an extension of his intuitive understanding of aesthetic balance, influenced by his music and poetry, and in this light his artwork can be understood more like visual songs than paintings. Some works are intended as illustrations for songs (scroll down to hear them); others are explosions of creativity, led by a playful curiosity about textures, surfaces, the capacity of different mediums, patterns, objects, light, colors, marks, and layers.
Palombo's painting practice was fearless. An insatiable curiosity led his approach and allowed him to consider all materials “art” materials. He allowed himself to be spontaneous and responsive to what was happening on his work surfaces, which were often recycled materials and found objects, in addition to paper and canvas. One example is the piece "Crazy Hannah" (2022), inspired by a song with the same name: a painting on untreated, recycled wood that was reprinted on vinyl, which Palombo later drew over during a previous exhibition, creating something completely new. Another example, "I Spy with My Little Eye" (2021), is a collage made of cut-outs and layers of drawings made with crayon, grease pencil, acrylic paint, and nail polish on a box top for a set of pastels.
Born in Mendoza, Argentina, Palombo achieved his first musical success at the age of 17 when his song "Vendimiador" was recorded by Los Trovadores and became an immediate and long-lasting hit. He moved to New York City in 1969 and continued to write songs that have been recorded by Mercedes Sosa, Philip Glass, Conjunto Libre, and Lucecita Benítez. Palombo also became a musical consultant and composer for film and television, including the PBS show Sesame Street.
Palombo's musical background and 40+ years of teaching inspired the development of El Taller's unique acoustic-based language programs for adults and children. His life's work revolved around the ethos that creativity is a transcendent force with the power to dispel fear and mistrust in order to foster a more humane world.
