Ernesto Caivano

In his meticulously worked drawings, Ernesto Caivano constructs surreal topographies and imaginary narratives of medieval chivalry inhabited by fantastic heroes and personified animals. His portfolio of 12 etchings, The Knight Interlude, further explores aestheticized myth in the emblematic form of the knight. With each progressive plate, the armored figure slowly metamorphosizes into a fanciful tree seemingly engulfed by the surreal growth of the surrounding landscape. In the final print of the portfolio, the knight is resurrected in a glowing negative image of his original silhouette. Caivano's dark, moody etchings follow the monochromatic, graphic style of his ink, gouache and watercolor drawings.

Ten years after his initial residency at the Neiman Center, Caivano created another series of intaglio prints, Ocular Moons and Ocular Moons (in Black). These etchings, printed in both black and white ink on chine collé effectively capture his delicate use of line. Caivano also explored the possibilities of photogravure and offset lithography.

Ernesto Caivano (b. 1972, Madrid, Spain) received his MFA from Columbia University in 2001.  He has had solo exhibitions at Richard Heller Gallery in Los Angeles, MoMA PS1 in Queens, and Pioneer Works in Brooklyn. Caivano has been included in group shows at Guild and Greyshkul, New York; Bronx River Art Center, New York; Grimm/Rosenfeld, Munich; Grant/Selwyn Fine Art, Los Angeles; and the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York. He currently lives and works in New York.

Learn more about this artist:

Artist Interview
Artist's Website 
Guggenheim