“Amigos son los Amigos”, “Friends are the Friends” is the name of the art exhibit that can be enjoyed at the AG Gallery in San Rafael, Escazú through July 30th and that shows a sample of the works of Joaquín Rodríguez del Paso (1961-2016) and his friends José Sancho and Miguel Hernández.

Joaquín Rodríguez del Paso was born in Mexico in 1961 and his family moved to Costa Rica when he was very young. He graduated from the University of Costa Rica and then attended the Pratt Institute of New York where he got a masters in Industrial Design. In Costa Rica he is considered one of the first artists to introduce conceptual art and he is one of the most renowned contemporary artists. In 2013 Rodríguez del Paso received the Aquileo J. Echeverría National Award in Visual Arts from the Ministry of Culture, he passed away in Costa Rica at 55 years of age, October 29th, 2016.

“He (Rodríguez) didn’t paint just to paint, he had a social, political and human message. There is movement with him. His name won’t be left in history as just another painter, because he has great influence in a lot of young artists”, said Adolfo Goldberg, director of AG Gallery.

“He was polemic like very few artists, he managed to touch intimate fibers with the purpose of getting the best out of someone, he criticized repetitive art and the establishment which he considered antiquated. He was in constant search of his work, without being categorized in particular topics or techniques, open to innovative tendencies, all under a natural intellectual force and profound culture”, stated Goldberg in reference to the exhibit.

Rodríguez had suggested at some point the idea of an exhibit at AG Gallery; after he passed away, his friends José Sancho and Miguel Hernández decided to do the exhibit as a posthumous tribute.

The gallery presents 15 paintings and 11 sculptures, the entrance if free of charge and the exhibit will be open through July 30 from Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

For those in the east of San José, the works of Miguel Hernández can be appreciated in the Chile Embassy where a sample of 11 of his works are in exhibition under the title “Distancia y Olvido”, “Distance and Oblivion”, which also shows paintings of Costa Rican-Russian Phillip Anaskin. Entrance is free.