Juanito Conte
biografiaJuanito Conte at his studio
Juanito’s work unfolds at the intersection of abstraction, perception, and memory. Through a meticulous exploration of color and form, he investigates how an image can condense sensory experiences and narratives, inviting the viewer into a state of active presence. Juanito approaches painting as a space of synthesis and construction—where overlapping layers, repeating patterns, and the exploration of white shape visual territories in perpetual transformation.
Juanito grew up in a print shop, surrounded by inks, half-tones, and mechanical processes that continue to resonate through his artistic practice, and this self-directed background defined a language that fuses the heritage of graphic arts with a gestural, expanded painterly approach. Flat fields of color, gradients, transparencies, and half-tone rasters transcend mere formal devices, offering a contemporary reimagining of the image within an era saturated with visual stimuli
He conceives his work as a response to the ‘great landfill of images’— the digital whirlpool that plunges us into constant visual consumption, permeating every corner of our lives. In this context, painting becomes an act of resistance: a territory where the gaze can slow down, immerse itself in detail, and reconstruct meaning. White, rather than a quest for chromatic purity, becomes a communicative catalyst — a pause amid the excess, a breath that allows form and light to take center stage. His practice is also a dialogue with memory and identity. His father’s graphic legacy, the construction of his own role as an artist and a father, and the way these experiences shape the perception of time and space are threads running through every piece.
Much like tectonic plates support and transform the landscape in a process of constant motion, Juanito’s work inhabits this very tension: between the digital and the physical, the mechanical and the handcrafted, the analog and the technological. He is drawn to exploring the points of friction between these worlds, questioning production processes and the marks they leave on the image. He intends for each piece to act as a point of encounter — rather than a space where the image imposes itself, an invitation to exploring, initiating a subtle play between the gaze and material.
Solo Exhibitions
2024
Obra Reciente [Recent Works], Galeria La Pecera, Punta del Este, Uruguay.
2022
Obra Reciente [Recent Works], Galeria Bisualeko, Montevideo, Uruguay.
2021
Highlight, Galeria La Pecera, Punta del Este, Uruguay.
2020
Highlight, Galeria La Pecera, Punta del Este, Uruguay.
Highlight, Galeria Bisualeko, Montevideo, Uruguay.
2019
Obra Reciente [Recent Works], Galeria Paradise, José Ignacio, Uruguay.
2017
Galeria 6280, Montevideo, Uruguay.
2016
MC Gallery, New York, NY, USA.
2014
Fundación Unión, Montevideo, Uruguay.
2011
Galeria 6280, Montevideo, Uruguay.
2010
Galeria Carlos Reggazoni, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
2009
Ultimus Moriens, Centro Cultural Lapido, Montevideo, Uruguay.
2008
Accidentes [Accidents], Centro Cultural Horacio Quiroga, Salto, Uruguay.
2003
ProcesoCeso, Sala Tono Maglio, Salto, Uruguay.
Group Exhibitions
2024
Prêmio Nacional de Artes Visuais [National Visual Arts Award], EAC – Espacio de Arte Contemporáneo, Montevideo, Uruguay.
2023
Abstração em Movimento [Abstraction in Motion], Museo Atchugarry, Maldonado, Uruguay.
2022
Galeria Bisualeko, Montevideo, Uruguay.
2021
Galeria La Pecera, Punta del Este, Uruguay.
2020
Galeria Bisualeko, Montevideo, Uruguay.
2019
Galeria La Pecera, Punta del Este, Uruguay.
Galeria Pueblo Garzón, Maldonado, Uruguay.
2018
De León / Conte – Golf Club, Punta del Este, Uruguay.
2017
Galeria Imperiale, Punta del Este, Uruguay.
2016
Galeria 6280, Montevideo, Uruguay.
World Trade Center, Montevideo, Uruguay.
2015
Paisagens Abstratas [Abstract Landscapes], Centro Cultural Kavlin, Punta del Este, Uruguay.
Fundación Unión, Montevideo, Uruguay.
2014
Group Exhibition, Inicio Mauá, Montevideo, Uruguay.
Group Exhibition, Hotel Esplendor, Montevideo, Uruguay.
2013
Galeria 6280, Montevideo, Uruguay.
World Trade Center, Montevideo, Uruguay.
Torre Imperial, Punta del Este, Uruguay.
2012
Marte Up-Market, Montevideo, Uruguay.
Sala Bartolomé Mitre, San José, Uruguay.
2011
Bienal de Salto (Murals Category), Salto, Uruguay.
2010
Painting Biennial of Guayaquil, Guayaquil, Ecuador.
Coletivo Arguru, Museo de Bellas Artes, Salto, Uruguay.
2009
Queens Museum, New York, NY, USA.
2008
Exhibition Hall of the Consulate of Uruguay in New York, New York, NY, USA.
Coletivo Arguru, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Espíritu Circular [Circular Spirit], Buenos Aires, Argentina.
2004
Galeria Árbol, San Isidro, Argentina.
2002
Palacio Santos, Montevideo, Uruguay.
2001
Efecto Placebo [Placebo Effect], Salão Mercado 18 de Julio, Salto, Uruguay.
Awards & Grants
2019
“Ventanilla Abierta” Incentive Fund, Ministry of Education and Culture (MEC), Uruguay.
Honorable Mention, Graphic Production, Anniversary of the 1968 Social Movements.
FEFCA Visual Arts Award, Ministry of Education and Culture (MEC), Uruguay.
2018
Honorable Mention, Competitive Funds (Fundos Concursáveis), MEC, Uruguay.
2016
Finalist, “Show Your World” International Art Competition, USA.
FEFCA Visual Arts Award, Ministry of Education and Culture (MEC), Uruguay.
2013
Painting Salon, San José, Uruguay.
2012
Honorable Mention, Northern Regional Mural, Bienal de Salto, Salto, Uruguay.
2011
Honorable Mention, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Painting Award, Montevideo, Uruguay.
2010
Honorable Mention, II Ecuador Biennial, Luis Noboa Naranjo Museum, Guayaquil, Ecuador.
2002
Visual Arts Salon, Palacio Santos, Montevideo, Uruguay.