One-Night-Only “Out of the Crate” Art Sale

Media Contact: David Perry / (415) 676-7007 / news@davidperry.com 

Wednesday, December 4: 5pm – 8pm in Palm Springs

One-Night-Only “Out of the Crate” Art Sale Featuring 60 Never-Before-Seen Paintings 

by Late Spanish/Brazilian Artist
María Eugenia Casuso

10% of All Proceeds Benefits The Pancreatic Cancer Action Network

Palm Springs Airport Self Storage
3950 Airport Center Drive

María Eugenia Casuso
(1941 – 2008)

25 November 2019 – Palm Springs, CA: “It is rare for an artist to possess such a profound graphic language, to release ego and face art like a faithful servant – like a saint, or a zen master.  María Eugenia Casuso is one of those rare artists who fits that mold” (Jacob Klintowitz, Panamericana Escola del Arte e Design – São Paulo, Brasil). For the serious collector, it is even rarer to discover an artist hitherto unknown – an artist who is so completely of a time and place. Such an artist is Spanish/Brazilian painter María Eugenia Casuso. On Wednesday, December 4 (5pm – 8pm) in Palm Springs, 60 never-before-seen works will be sold in a special one-night-only art sale at the Palm Springs Airport Self Storage Center (3950 Airport Center Drive, off of Ramon).  These rare, large-scale, geometric paintings are certain to cause a stir in Mid-Century Modern-centric Palm Springs. 10% of all proceeds will benefit the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network.  Refreshments will be served. 

“This is museum quality work,” said Karyn Mannix of Contemporary Art. “This is an opportunity that true art aficionados should not miss.”

Mannix presented some of the larger scale paintings by Casuso at last month’s Art San Diego Fair and will feature additional works by Casuso at the upcoming Art Palm Springs during February’s Modernism Week.

“My aunt was an incredibly talented artist,” says Alfredo Casuso, who along with his husband David Perry are producing this unique event. “When we opened the crates from Brazil, we were astounded by the output. We had no idea this much of her art had remained, unknown for so many years, in storage.”

“It was, literally, like finding hidden treasure,” continued Perry, for over 30 years a specialist in cultural and arts marketing. “Art is about emotion and passion. Buying and selling art should be fun and accessible. That’s why we’re doing this sale in addition to some of the more standard art-fair opportunities more common for such works. Also, we want to thank the folks at the Palm Springs Airport Self Storage for taking part in this fun and unique event.  They’ve been terrific.”

Born in Santander, on Spain’s northern coast on the Gulf of Biscay, María Eugenia Casuso emigrated as a teenager to Venezuela with her parents. There she studied art and interior design at the renowned Emma Illes Art Academy in Caracas. Referred by the Director of the Academy, she started her professional vocation, rising quickly to the top of her career at Decovensa, one of Venezuela’s most sought-after interior design firms where she worked for 10 years. 

These were “the boom years” in Venezuela, andMaría Eugenia’s unique talents were called upon for some of the country’s most important companies.  In 1972 she became a Venezuelan citizen and married Andras Dobroy: a Hungarian / Brazilian executive, the head of Marketing for Chrysler Europe and himself a onetime film actor of some repute in his native Hungary. The couple lived in Paris and Brussels for several years before moving to São Paulo in 1978. There María Eugenia began a period of intense creativity resulting in her participation in popular contemporary exhibitions at the Galería Porta, Rio Claro and Americana galleries in São Paulo followed by her one solo exhibition in Galería de Arte André.  

“The theme of María Eugenia’s work is the structure of space, the rhythmic possibilities of the heart, and geometry,” wrote Jacob Klintowitz, Director of the prestigious Panamericana Escola del Arte e Design in São Paulo.“She thinks of the canvas as a deterministic universe in which shapes evolve in harmonious movements. The juxtaposition of these shapes creates a visual rhythm and gently guides the eyes of the viewer. Other times, the shape turns in an apparently infinite space like a dancing goddess creating the reality of the world. They are shapes living in a spontaneous and predetermined dialog. Her paintings seem effortless, yet it is evident that their creation required tremendous concentration, a laborious study of geometric matters, and a vital energy of astonishing proportions. Hers is a form of painting which is organized, severe, detailed and planned. Yet, that rigor doesn’t affect the feeling that they are only possible through existential examination. The shapes may dance in space, yet they are tied to an expert and sensuous thought.”

Inexplicably, María Eugenia stopped painting after 1987, although astute buyers and designers sought her out over the years, she having produced a considerable body of work that still graces homes, offices and corporate lobbies throughout Brazil. 

Diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in July 2007, she died surrounded by family in January 2008. In the intervening decade, a hitherto unknown trove of María Eugenia’s art was discovered. Now, this unique artist makes her North American debut – truly something special for the discerning collector.

Catalogue Cover: “Pinturas: María Eugenia Casuso”
Galería de Arte André in São Paulo / 27 October – 7 November 1987)