Gastón Ugalde

Gastón Ugalde (1 July 1944 – 14 October 2023) is considered the father of contemporary bolivian art and was the recipient of the prestigious Konex Award in 2002 along with Oscar Niemeyer. Ugalde was named "the most important living Bolivian artist" by the Konex Foundation in Argentina and was also referred to as the "Andean Warhol" by art critics. Ugalde was also known as "the enfant terrible" of the Bolivian Art Scene.

"Ugalde was Bolivia’s best-known contemporary artist. Born in the city of La Paz, Ugalde was known, despite his decades-long career, as the "enfant terrible" of the local art world for the subversive nature, both conceptually and materially, of his artwork. Throughout Ugalde's extensive career, his works span a diversity of media, including painting, photography, collage, installation, and performance."

Spanning a half-century career, he was considered a video-art pioneer in Latin America and his work included performance, painting, sculpture, installation, land-art, photography, and printmaking. From 1972 he had over 90 solo shows and over 100 collective exhibitions all over the world. He represented his home country at important biennales such as Venice (2009, 2001), São Paulo (1978, 1981, 1985), Paris (1982), Havana (1986, 1999), Bienal do Mercosul (1997, 2015), and Trienal de Chile (2009).

Gastón Ugalde died on 14 October 2023, at the age of 79.