Martin Pelenur

Grillas by Martín Pelenur, Abstract Blue Grid Painting Geometric Pattern, 2022

2022

Martín Pelenur (b. 1977, Buenos Aires) is a Uruguayan contemporary artist known for his exploration of painting through systems of repetition, material experimentation, and geometric structure. Based in La Barra, Punta del Este, his practice investigates the relationship between process, color, and form, often working with industrial paints, tapes, and layered pigments to construct complex abstract compositions. Pelenur studied at the Fundación de Arte Contemporáneo in Montevideo and began exhibiting his work in the late 1990s. His paintings develop through methodical yet open-ended processes, where repetition and variation generate intricate grids, patterns, and color fields that balance precision with spontaneity. His work has been exhibited internationally, including at the Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Buenos Aires, the Figari Museum in Montevideo, the Art Nexus Foundation in Bogotá, and galleries in New York, Los Angeles, and Barcelona. Pelenur has received several awards, including the Paul Cézanne Prize in Montevideo and multiple FEFCA grants from the Uruguayan Ministry of Culture. Alongside his studio practice, he is the founder of La Pecera, an artist-run space in Punta del Este dedicated to supporting contemporary art in Uruguay. His work reflects an ongoing investigation into painting as both a structured system and a field of experimentation, where repetition, material processes, and color relationships generate dynamic contemporary abstraction.