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Roberto de Fortino: Argentina's Master of Movement in Cubist Tango Sculptures
From Buenos Aires studios to global collectors, Roberto de Fortino transforms the passionate embrace of tango into geometric poetry through hand-carved wooden sculptures that capture Argentina's cultural soul.
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In the flowing curves of Roberto de Fortino's wooden sculptures, we discover how the passionate embrace of tango transcends dance to become pure artistic expression. This Buenos Aires-based artist transforms single pieces of honey-toned wood into intimate moments of connection, capturing the soul of Argentina's most iconic cultural export through masterful cubist simplification. His sculptures invite us into a world where movement becomes geometry, where emotion distills into essential form, and where the timeless dance of human connection finds its voice in carved wood.
Discovering Roberto de Fortino's Artistic Journey
Roberto de Fortino emerged from Buenos Aires' vibrant contemporary art scene as a sculptor uniquely positioned to interpret Argentina's cultural heritage through modernist eyes. Working from his studio in the heart of the city that gave birth to tango, de Fortino developed his distinctive approach during the early 2000s, exploring how traditional cultural expressions could find new life through contemporary artistic techniques.
Canvas & Bronze discovered de Fortino's remarkable work during a 2006 art expedition through Buenos Aires' galleries and artist studios. His pieces spoke a universal language of intimacy and movement that transcended cultural boundaries while remaining deeply rooted in Argentine identity. The gallery acquired two significant works from this period: "Tango Argentina" and "Tango Argentina II," both representing the pinnacle of his artistic exploration of dance as sculptural form.
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Roberto de Fortino"Tango Argentina" Cubist Figurative Wood Sculpture by Roberto de Fortino, 2006WoodApprox H 10” x W 5” x D 1.5”$825.00
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The Soul of Argentina: Tango as Cultural Expression
Tango represents far more than dance in Argentine culture—it embodies the nation's complex emotional landscape, its celebration of human connection in the face of urban isolation. De Fortino's sculptures function as powerful visual celebrations of this heritage, transforming abstract artistic concepts into immediate, visceral experiences of cultural identity.
His works capture not just the physical movements of tango but its psychological depth—the vulnerability required to surrender to another person's lead, the trust implicit in the close embrace. Through his cubist lens, de Fortino reveals how tango's essence lies not in elaborate steps but in the fundamental human need for connection and understanding.
The artist's choice to work in wood adds cultural significance. Wood carries its own history, its own grain patterns that speak to organic growth and time's passage. In de Fortino's hands, this living material becomes a metaphor for how cultural traditions evolve while maintaining their essential character.
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Roberto de Fortino2006 "Tango Argentina II" Cubist Figurative Wood …, 2006WoodApprox. H 5.5” x W 9” x D 1.5”$825.00
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De Fortino's work exemplifies Canvas & Bronze's philosophy that meaningful art creates connections between past and present, between different cultures, and between the stories that objects carry and the stories we create around them. In transforming tango into geometric poetry, his sculptures remind us that the most profound artistic statements often emerge from the marriage of traditional cultural expressions with contemporary artistic vision.
Ready to discover how Roberto de Fortino's tango sculptures can bring the passion and cultural richness of Argentina into your collection? Explore his available works and other treasures from Argentina at Canvas & Bronze.