(1983 - )
Born in Venezuela in 1983 to Grenadian and Haitian migrant workers, Alvaro Barrington
was raised between the Caribbean and Brooklyn, New York, by a network of relatives.
He says, ‘When you look at my paintings, you’re encountering parts of my identity. I
grew up in a culture where it was really about erasing hierarchies, where we’re all
participating in cultural production.’ He now lives and works in London, and an
unwavering commitment to community informs his wide-ranging practice. His approach
to painting is equally inclusive – embracing non-traditional materials and techniques
such as burlap, concrete, cardboard and sewing – and infused with references to his
personal and cultural history. Influence and exchange are crucial to the artist, who
draws upon a host of artistic and cultural references in his work.
His resolutely interdisciplinary approach follows in the footsteps of Robert
Rauschenberg’s groundbreaking Combines, which he references by incorporating real
objects into the picture plane, including tyres, carpets, steel drums, brooms and fans.
He is an artist who is continually expanding his constellation of references, inspirations
and communities, while always acknowledging the formative role of art history in his
practice. While Barrington considers himself primarily a painter, his artistic
collaborations encompass exhibitions, performances, concerts, fashion, philanthropy
and contributions to the Notting Hill Carnival in London.
