Enrique Vila Biography
Caracas, Venezuela, 1945
Venezuelan drawing artist with the human being as his main subject matter, but as time has gone by, he has focused more on the expressions and moods reflected by the human face. He has made an effort to reveal when an expression is a "natural face" or when it's a "mask".
Since 1955 he's dedicated to draw. His main sources of reference have been the german Expressionism, Egon Schiele, Kathe Kollwitz, Alberto Giacometti and Pablo Picasso on an international level. On a national and latinamerican level he's influenced by Jose Guadalupe Posadas' Catrinas in Mexico, Armando Reveron and various graphic artists from Venezuela, specially Gego (Gertrudis Goldsmith).
He has participated in different group shows since 1961 and in 1980 he did his first solo exhibition called "Caras". Between 1962 and 1966, he was part of all the Art Exhibitions from the architecture students, obtaining the award for best drawing on the first year. He has also been included in various Halls of Art from the professors of the UCV, winning the award for a collection of his work (drawing, painting and sculpture). He was part of the Exposicion Latino-Americana de Dibujo y Grabado with three pieces.
Enrique Vila uses mixed techniques and colors on their contrasting edges, searching to heighten the part of everyday life that stays subconscious. He tries to make the characters leave the drawing itself and incorporate the psychic life of the spectators.
His artistic career has been complements with his work as a graphic designer and architect, winning two awards in 1987 in the international contest of conceptual design "Ciudad de Informacion Avanzada" for Kawasaki, Japan.
He has obtained the following degrees: Architect (1967), Master of Architecture in Berkley, California (1971), Master in Education (1983) and PhD (1998). Is a professor in the Universidad Central de Venezuela, Visiting Scholar in the University of California, Berkley, Honorary Professor in the Universidad Nacional Experimental del Tachira and Guest Professor in the Universidad de Aguascalientes in Mexico.