Leon Ferrari

León Ferrari (September 3, 1920 – July 25, 2013), was a contemporary conceptual artist.

Born in Buenos Aires, Ferrari employs methods such as collage, photocopying and sculpture in wood, plaster or ceramics. He often uses text, particularly newspaper clippings or poetry, in his pieces. His art often deals with the subject of power and religion; images or statues of the saints, the Virgin Mary or Jesus may be found in cages, sinks, meat blenders or frying pans. He has also dealt with issues of United States influence — in his best-known work, La civilización occidental y cristiana ("Western-Christian Civilization", 1965), Christ appears crucified on a fighter plane, as a symbolic protest against the Vietnam War.

Ferrari has also written articles for left-leaning newspaper Página 12. His work and his politics have brought him into some controversy and notoriety. He was forced into exile in São Paulo, Brazil from 1976 to 1991 following threats by the military dictatorships. In 2004, his exhibition in Recoleta, Buenos Aires, was forced to close following intervention by a Catholic priest and a subsequent court order. Protests and government action allowed the exhibition to reopen.

In 2009 the Museum of Modern Art in New York featured his work in a major exhibition with artist Mira Schendel called Tangled Alphabets.

In 2012 Konex Foundation from Argentina granted him the Diamond Konex Award for Visual Arts as the most important artist in the last decade in his country. He died on July 25 2013. He was 92 years old.