Leandro Erlich: “Le Parc helped broaden the horizon of what was possible to imagine”

Argentine artist Leandro Erlich describes his deep and long-standing admiration for Julio Le Parc, a relationship that began with encountering Le Parc's work as a teenager in Buenos Aires. That initial encounter was a revelation, showing Erlich that art could embody both intellectual rigor and boundless imagination, and that visual experiences could be as profound as words.

"In Le Parc's work, perception is not simply a vehicle for meaning: it is the meaning itself," Erlich stated. "The visual experience occupies a central place and turns the gaze into the protagonist. His works taught me that it is possible to think through the eyes and that what we see can challenge us with a depth comparable to words."

Decades later, Erlich met Le Parc in Paris, developing a relationship marked by his profound respect for the elder artist's exceptional career. He was particularly impressed by Le Parc's inexhaustible curiosity, his continuous experimentation, and his persistent questioning of perceptual limits. As an Argentine artist who also developed much of his career abroad, Erlich found in Le Parc a unique reference point.

Erlich sees Le Parc's journey, which began with his move to Europe in the late 1950s, as having paved the way for several generations of artists. Beyond his historical importance, Erlich was moved by Le Parc's immense intellectual and human generosity. Their conversations revealed a consistent artistic coherence, a free exploration of the unknown driven by a desire to question rather than rely on acquired answers, making experimentation and doubt his creative method.

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In Le Parc's work, perception is not simply a vehicle for meaning: it is the meaning itself. The visual experience occupies a central place and turns the gaze into the protagonist. His works taught me that it is possible to think through the eyes and that what we see can challenge us with a depth comparable to words.