Maria Lago’s artistic journey spans more than four decades and crosses continents, mediums, and eras of human expression. Born in Asturias, Spain—just miles from ancient Paleolithic caves that shaped her early visual sensibility—Lago carries forward a deep, intuitive connection to symbolism, ritual, and the mark-making traditions of ancestral cultures.
Educated at the University Complutense and Círculo de Bellas Artes in Madrid, and later at Parsons School of Design and the Robert Blackburn Printmaking Workshop in New York, Lago has built a career grounded in formal training yet liberated by improvisation. Now based in Beacon, NY, where she established her studio 15 years ago, she continues to create work that invites dialogue between time, matter, and memory.
Lago’s paintings and sculptures are resolutely tactile. Working with raw materials such as burlap, clay, cement, oil and acrylic, she constructs richly layered surfaces that echo both personal and collective histories. Scraps from earlier works are often sewn into new canvases—acts of reclamation and transformation that mirror the cyclical rhythms of life and nature. Her process evokes archaeology: digging, revealing, assembling fragments into coherent, resonant forms.
At the heart of Lago’s practice is a visual language of symbols, circles, gestural marks, and molecular forms, that suggest a metaphysical inquiry into origin and existence. Her abstract expressionist vocabulary feels at once ancient and futuristic, physical and cosmic. The work resonates with a kind of sacred energy, merging urban immediacy with ancestral quietude.
As we navigate an era defined by accelerating technology and digital precision, Lago’s art reminds us of the enduring power of the human hand, of intuition, and of the mystery embedded in organic materials. Her works do not just reflect the world; they pulse with the spirit of something older and deeper, a language beyond words, yet universally felt.
Her exhibitions throughout Europe and the United States, from the Cervantes Institute to the Heckscher Museum, from the Westchester Biennial to Merrill Lynch Hispanic Heritage, testify to a wide and lasting impact. With works held in private and institutional collections across Spain, Mexico, England, and the U.S., Maria Lago continues to engage viewers in an intimate, timeless conversation about memory, matter, and the metaphysical.
Maria Lago
La trayectoria artística de Maria Lago abarca más de cuatro décadas y cruza continentes, medios y eras de la expresión humana. Nacida en Asturias, España, a pocos kilómetros de las cuevas paleolíticas que marcaron su sensibilidad visual desde muy joven, Maria Lago lleva consigo una conexión profunda e intuitiva con el simbolismo, el ritual y la tradición ancestral del acto de crear.
Formada en la Universidad Complutense y el Círculo de Bellas Artes de Madrid, y posteriormente en Parsons School of Design y el Robert Blackburn Printmaking Workshop en Nueva York, Maria Lago ha construido una carrera fundamentada en la formación académica, pero liberada por la improvisación. Actualmente reside en Beacon, NY, donde estableció su estudio hace 15 años , y desde donde continúa desarrollando una obra que genera un diálogo constante entre el tiempo, la materia y la memoria.
Las pinturas y esculturas de Maria Lago son profundamente táctiles. Trabajando con materiales como arpillera, arcilla, cemento, óleo y acrílico, construye superficies ricas en capas que evocan historias tanto personales como colectivas. Retazos de obras anteriores son a menudo cosidas en nuevos lienzos —actos de recuperación y transformación que reflejan los ritmos cíclicos de la vida y la naturaleza.Su proceso evoca la arqueología: excavar, revelar, ensamblar fragmentos en formas coherentes y resonantes.
En el esencia de su creacion artística habita un lenguaje visual simbólico: círculos, gestos caligráficos, estructuras moleculares que aluden a una búsqueda metafísica sobre el origen y la existencia. Su vocabulario expresionista abstracto resulta a la vez ancestral y futurista, físico y cósmico. La obra de Maria Lago irradia una energía sagrada que fusiona la inmediatez urbana con el silencio de lo ancestral.
En una era marcada por la aceleración tecnológica y la precisión digital, el arte de Maria Lago nos recuerda el poder persistente de la mano humana, de la intuición y del misterio latente en los materiales orgánicos. Sus obras no solo reflejan el mundo: laten con el espíritu de algo más antiguo y profundo, un lenguaje más allá de las palabras, pero universalmente sentido.
Sus exposiciones en Europa y Estados Unidos , desde el Instituto Cervantes hasta el Heckscher Museum, desde la Bienal de Westchester hasta Merrill Lynch Hispanic Heritage, dan testimonio de un impacto amplio y duradero. Con obras presentes en colecciones privadas e institucionales en España, México, Inglaterra y Estados Unidos, Maria Lago continúa involucrando al espectador en una conversación íntima y atemporal sobre la memoria, la materia y lo metafísico.
Maria Lago
Maria lago was born in Spain and lives in Beacon, New York
Education
1983 Universidad Complutense, Madrid , Spain
1984 Circulo de Bellas Artes , Madrid , Spain
1987 Parsons School of Fine Arts, New York, NY
Publications
2024 Hudson Valley Magazine, Maria Lago abstract work, River Reflections,Grit Gallery,NY
2020 The Highlands Current, From Spain to Main by Allison Rooney, NY
2017 Instituto Cervantes, 30 years retrospective, New York, NY
2017 El Comercio, Asturias, 30 años retrospectiva-pinturas y esculturas, Spain
2017 La Nueva España,Maria Lago in The Cervantes Institute in NY , Asturias, Spain
2017 Poughkeepsie Journal, Latin American art, NY
2015 Hudson Valley Press, The Art work of Maria Lago by Jennifer L.Warren, NY
2014 Kosmos Journal, Co.Creating the new Civilization
2014 Beacon Press, Exhibit Honor Women Artists,Lago "The Cosmic Serpent"
2014 Poughkeepsie Journal, Creative Contributions by Women, by Linda MarstonReid
2014 The Philipstown Paper- Women Artists at the Howland by Kevin E. Foley, NY
2012 ART-TALK Magazine, The Exodus paintings
2012 The Philipstown Paper- About the Exodus Paintings
2011 Chronogam Magazine, Hudson Valley, NY
2011 Asturias daily News, La Nueva España, Asturias, Spain
2008 Fine Arts America "Etchings and Solar Plates Today"
2008 The Rivertowns Enterprise by Judith Doolin Spikes, New York
2008 Catalogue for "The Westchester Biennial ", New York
2007 Asturias daily News, La Nueva España, Asturias, Spain
2006 The New York Sun Newspaper, Solo Show at the NAWA Gallery, New York
2005 Catalogue review by W. Zimmer, contributing critic for The New York Times
2001 Hispanic Heritage Month, by Beatriz de la Mora, Curator, New York
2000 Westchester County Weekly, Westchester, NY
1995 Review for the international exhibition, Winter Olympic Museum, lake Placid, NY
1995 New York Newsday by Jonathan Fine , New York
1993 The Brooklyn Arts Council, Arts Calendar, Brooklyn, New York
1992 V Bienal Nacional de Pintura “La carbonera”, Asturias, Spain
1992 Mujeres Artistas del Principado de Asturias, Oviedo, Spain
1991 Women’s diverse Reflections, Women’s week, Tallahassee, Florida
1991 Manhattan Arts, Artist in the 90”S by Marylyn Becker, New York
1991 Asturias daily News, Hoja De Lunes, Asturias, Spain
1989 Art Business News, New York
1989 Catalogue for “Soho in deSota”, Florida
1989 Tallahassee democrat news by Betty Rubenstein, Tallahassee, Florida
1989 Artspeak ‘The Power and Passion” by Claude LeSue, New York
1988 Consulado General de España, B C, New York
1987 Daily Newspaper, El Correo de Asturias, Asturias, Spain
1987 Noticias Del Mundo by David Boitano, New York
1987 Catalogue for exhibition International Year of the Woman, New York
Individual Exhibitions
2024 Grit Gallery, River Reflections, Newburgh, NY
2022 The abstract work of Maria Lago, Beacon, NY
2020 Gallery at The Falcon, The Ideographic paintings, Marlboro, NY
2017 30 years Retrospective,Sculptures and paintings, Instituto Cervantes, New York, NY
2017 Maria Lago Retrospective, One Main St, Beacon,NY
2016 The Hebrew Tabernacle Congregation, New York, NY
2015 Studio 502, the Wanderers, Beacon, NY
2014 The Falcon, Marlboro, NY
2013 Studio 502, Between Birches/Entre Abedules, Beacon, NY
2013 Studio 502, Journey into Art, Beacon, NY
2012 Studio 502, Brain on fire, Beacon, NY
2012 Studio 502, The Exodus paintings, Beacon, NY
2012 Rhinebeck Bank, Wappinger Falls, NY
2011 Gallery on Cedar, Dobb Ferry, NY
2011 Studio502, Planets and Landscapes, Beacon, NY
2010 Centro Español Manhattan, New York
2009 Sala de Arte del ayuntamiento de Viveiro, Galicia, Spain
2008 Martucci Gallery, Irvington, NY
2008 National Association of Women Artists, New York, NY
2005 Sala de Exposiciones BBVA, Oviedo, Spain
2005 Chelsea Pier Sixty, New York, NY
2004 Public Library, Harrison, NY
2003 Sound Federal Bank, Cos Cob, CT
2003 The Bronxville Public Library, Bronxville, NY
1997 The Greenwich Arts Center, Greenwich, CT
1997 The Chase Manhattan Bank, Brooklyn, NY
1991 The Brooklyn Arts Council, Brooklyn, NY
1989 Straus Gallery, New York, NY
1988 Ledo Gallery, New York, NY
Collective Exhibitions
2024 Mother Earth, The Hebrew Tabernacle Congregation, New York, NY
2022 The Howland Cultural Center, 100th Anniversary of Woman Suffrage
2018 I’m immigrant, Instituto Cervantes, New York, NY
2017 The Howland Cultural Center, Hudson Valley artists, Beacon,NY
2016 The Saunders art project, Collaborative Concepts, Garrison, NY
2015 The Howland Cultural Art Center, Hispanic Heritage, Beacon, NY
2015 Theo Ganz Studio, Beacon, NY
2014 Beacon CD Show, Beacon, NY
2014 Multi-Media Art Expo, The Fourth Universalis Society, New York
2014 Hudson Valley Art Center, Poughkeepsie, NY
2014 The Howland Cultural Art Center, Women Artists, Beacon, NY
2013 National Juries Art Show, Wide Open, Brooklyn, NY
2012 Centro Español de Manhattan, En Torno a las Mujeres, New York
2012 Theo Ganz Studio, Summer Blues, Beacon, NY
2011 Exhibition Two Colors, Chashama Gallery, New York
2010 Spanish Artists without Borders, Centro Español, New York
2010 Museo de Arte Contemporáneo, Langreo, Asturias, Spain
2009 Gallería de Arte Van Dyck, Gijón, Asturias, Spain
2008 Brooklyn Artists GYM Gallery, Brooklyn, NY
2008 The Westchester Biennial, the College of New Rochelle, New York
2007 Robert Blackburn Printmaking, New Printings, Solar Plates, New York
2005 Merrill Lynch-Hispanic Heritage, World Financial Center, NY
2005 Merrill Lynch, Princeton, NJ
2005 Chelsea Pier Sixty, New York, NY
2003 Old Greenwich Art Center, Old Greenwich, CT
2001 The Westchester Arts Council, White Plains, NY
2000 Lake Placid Winter Olympic Museum, Lake Placid, NY
1998 The Art Students League, New York
1998 CNS Gallery, Brooklyn, NY
1997 Pier Show IV, Brooklyn, NY
1997 CNS Gallery, Brooklyn, NY
1996 Pier Show III, Brooklyn, NY
1993 Art Windows Gallery, Chicago, IL
1993 V Biennale Nacional, Asturias, Spain
1993 Barbara Gibson Gallery, Nyack, NY
1992 Sala Baron II, Oviedo, Spain
1992 Tribeca Gallery, New York, NY
1992 Emporia State University, Emporia, Kansas
1991 Caja de Ahorros de Asturias, La Felguera, Spain
1991 A.I.R. Gallery, New York, NY
1990 The Art Students League, New York
1990 The Heckscher Museum, Huntington, NY
1989 The Tallahassee Gallery, Tallahassee, FL
1989 Straus Gallery, New York, NY
1988 Helio Gallery, East Village, New York, NY
1988 Avanian Gallery,, New York, NY 1988 Ward-Lawrence Gallery, New York, NY
1988 Caja de Ahorros de Asturias, La Felguera, Spain
1988 Irv Fischer Gallery, Detroit, MI
1987 Gallery Picasso Casa de Espana, New York, NY