Omar Rayo

Omar Rayo (20 January 1928 – 7 June 2010) was a Colombian painter, sculptor, caricaturist and plastic artist. He won the 1970 Salón de Artistas Colombianos. Rayo worked with abstract geometry primarily employing black, white and red. He was part of the Op Art movement. Rayo's work shows that geometric art is as much a part of the past as it is of the future. He used traces of the past to discover new ways to present visual and geometric sketches.

One of his most celebrated exhibitions was carried out in the National Room of the Museum of the Palace of fine arts of Mexico, titled "20 years, 100 works: Omar Rayo."

Museum

The Museo Rayo de Dibujo y Grabado Latinoamericano was founded on January 20, 1981 by Rayo in his hometown of Roldanillo, Valle del Cauca with funds the artist himself provided, along with help from Colombian government agencies and others so that on this site would remain a permanent exhibit of his works of art. The museum was designed by Mexican architect Leopoldo Gout and opened with a collection of 2,000 of Rayo's artwork and some 500 other Latin American artists' works. The museum contains a library, many modules for expositions, a graphic arts workshop and a theater.

Death

In the early hours of June 7, 2010, Rayo collapsed while having breakfast at his Roldanillo residence. He died on the way to a hospital in Cali, Colombia, after having suffered a heart attack.

References

• (Spanish) Museo Rayo
• (Spanish) Latin Art Museum; Omar Rayo
• (Spanish) El Tiempo, Colombia "Ómar Rayo murió de un infarto" [1]

Persondata
Name	Rayo, Omar
Alternative names
Short description	Grabador, escultor y pintor colombiano
Date of birth	20 January 1928
Place of birth	Roldanillo (Valle) - Colombia
Date of death	7 June 2010
Place of death	Cali, Colombia