Antonio Caro, the great Colombian conceptual artist, dies age 71

Antonio Caro, the Colombian conceptual artist, has died aged 71. Bogotá’s Casas Riegner, the gallery representing the artist, announced the news on social media, citing him as “one of the talents most representative of Columbian art from the seventies to the present.” 

Regarded as one of Colombia’s most important conceptual artists, Antonio Caro became widely recognised thanks to his ability to exploit the visual potential of words. Employing non-conventional techniques and forms to communicate concise messages that address socio-political and cultural issues, Caro created artworks that both manifest anti-conventional attitudes and stimulate critical reflection. Crucial to his conceptual strategy was the use of repetition, which not only reiterates communication, but emphasises meaning, and provides new readings.