Artist Statement
My work is grounded in a desire to understand the emotional and psychological layers of contemporary life. Through vivid color, symbolic environments, and a fluid balance between figuration and abstraction, I explore the tension between inner stillness and the external noise that shapes the human experience. Each painting is a negotiation between clarity and chaos — a dialogue between the mind’s quiet spaces and the sensory overwhelm of the world around us.
Color is central to my practice, functioning not as decoration but as emotional architecture. I use saturated hues, gradients, and rhythmic patterns to construct environments that vibrate with memory, sensation, and psychological weight. Figures often emerge from — or dissolve into — these chromatic landscapes, suggesting moments of vulnerability, contemplation, or transformation. They are never simple portraits; they are states of being.
My compositions are built through layers of gesture and intention. I rely on both control and improvisation, allowing each mark to respond to the one before it. This fluid process mirrors the complexity of human experience, where stability and disruption coexist. I paint to uncover this duality, to give form to feelings that are often intangible, and to acknowledge the emotional turbulence that defines our time.
Across canvas, linen, and paper, my goal is to create work that resonates beyond the surface — work that invites viewers to recognize parts of themselves within these shifting, colorful worlds. My paintings are not answers but mirrors: reflections of the inner landscapes we navigate every day.
Biography
Carlos Buitrago is a Southern California–based ultra-contemporary artist whose work merges expressive color, conceptual storytelling, and emotional abstraction to explore the complexity of the human condition. His practice spans canvas, linen, panel, and works on paper, each revealing a vivid, layered approach that balances structure and spontaneity, figuration and abstraction, narrative and intuition. His fearless chromatic language reflects an ongoing investigation into memory, perception, psychology, and the rhythms of contemporary life.
Although Buitrago had created art for many years, 2020 marked a pivotal turning point in his trajectory. During this period, he transitioned into a fully dedicated studio practice, establishing the mature visual language that now defines his work. Since then, he has developed a rapidly expanding body of paintings distinguished by dynamic surfaces, intricate mark-making, and symbolic environments that mirror the tension between inner stillness and external noise.
His career includes exhibitions in Tokyo, Miami, Los Angeles, New York, and London, as well as receiving the Award for Excellence at the Japan International Art Exchange Exhibition. His work has been featured in curated exhibitions alongside major modern and contemporary artists and is held in private collections across the United States. In Southern California, his solo exhibitions — including Wanderlust Trails — have reinforced his reputation as a rising voice with a distinctive aesthetic and a committed collector base.
Rooted in authenticity and exploration, Buitrago’s practice embraces both large-scale thematic paintings and intimate works on paper, each contributing to a cohesive investigation of color, emotion, and the evolving narrative of the self. His recent works reflect an increasingly sophisticated engagement with materiality and composition, affirming his place within the new generation of artists shaping the ultra-contemporary landscape.
He continues to expand his practice from his studio in Southern California, building a visual legacy grounded in depth, experimentation, and an unwavering devotion to the craft of painting.