Alfonso Villagran (a.k.a Artis)
Alfonso Villagran (a.k.a Artis) was born in Uruguay. At the age of six, Artis started painting motivated by his mother who is also a painter. He studied Apparel Design for a couple of years until he finally decided to dedicate his life to art, his true passion!
In 2009, Artis started exhibiting his art abroad. Showing at Walrod Gallery (Buenos Aires, Argentina), Casa Dasein Gallery (Buenos Aires, Argentina) and Restoration Media (Tustin, CA, United States).
In 2010, Artis moved to Europe looking for inspiration, knowing that back home it was not easy to be who he wanted, an art entrepreneur! While travelling the world he exhibited his art in Alex Solodov Gallery (Moscow, Russia), MACI – VII Bienal Internacional de Arte Colombiano (Bogotá, Colombia.), Egg and chips Gallery (Barcelona, Spain), Simonkatu Art Space (Helsinki, Finland), Moscow Art Biennale, Alex Solodov Gallery (Moscow, Russia), Art Biennale Bucharest, Saint Ink Gallery (Bucharest, Rumania).
Since 2013, Artis held several exhibits in the United States. He showcased his work at Andy Warhol Cigar Factory Gallery, The Factory Studio, Art Basel, Museum of Coral Gables, Art Basel Miami DKONCEPT and even had an art installation at Wynwood (Miami, Florida).
In Los Angeles, Artis met Mark “The Cobrasnake” who helped him realise that entering partnerships with other artists and brands could boost his own work!
Spending time with others has always been crucial in order for him to paint and after months of missing family and friends be decided to move back to Uruguay. Back home, Artis created his own brand “Art is for Lovers”. His brand gave him the chance to paint with different tools and materials and all kinds of textures and objects which is fundamental for an artist who enjoys new experiences.
Since then, Artis has partnered with international brands such as Samsung, Bombay and Mercedes Benz.
Sharing his paintings through social media Artis became an art influencer. He has over 19,000 followers (including us) on Instagram (@artis4lovers) with whom he shares his work every day. He is also dedicated to muralism & spray painting.
His paintings can be spotted in cool places such as Montevideo and Punta del Este. The reviews about his work prove that Artis has a clear style, making his art easy to recognise and love.
“The work of [Artis] establishes a pictorial dialogue between formal and abstract art. We don't talk about the paintings as defined, it represents the transition and the change. It is a record of the construction of women today using pictorial resources of abstraction as an allegory of the creation. His characters with clearly neo-classical influences generate a timeless atmosphere once again, growing questions that revolve around a possibility of a total construction of the female identity as we know it”. - Carolina Hedergen
