Lucila Velásquez begins this interview with a reflection on the role that experimentation plays in the creative process, especially that of an artist such as Oswaldo Vigas, the Venezuelan painter. Velásquez discards the experimental dimension of an established artist, which Vigas himself validates during the interview; in his judgment, the “final” product is more important than the “búsquedas” [search]. For his part, Vigas expounds on his artistic idea, the use of color as an expressive technique, and the role that collectors and gallery owners play within the art market.

The interview conducted by journalist Lucila Velásquez (b. 1928) was published for the Mitificaciones [Mythifications] exhibition, a solo show by Venezuelan painter Oswaldo Vigas (b. 1926) organized in Caracas in 1970 by the Galería Mendoza. It constitutes an assessment of his work, and an entrance of his work into a period of “apaciguamiento” [pacification]. This after a stage of abandon with regard to the use of forms and expressive resources—which had already been pointed out by French critic Gaston Diehl (1912–1999) in his book Oswaldo Vigas (Caracas: Armitano Arte, 1990). There was a new sense of structure wherein forms were articulated, an exercise in abstraction based on recurring themes that then characterized the work of Vigas. The motives and ideas of the past were submitted to a process of refinement that, in Velásquez’s opinion, is a sign of maturity. The process is not seen as an experiment, but instead as a product of what came before. Vigas states he seeks a “producto definitivo” [definitive product], one more finished, in comparison to his earlier periods. This is an exercise necessary for his foray into tapestry, which he would tackle shortly afterward. His stance, which opposed the notion of a “búsqueda” [search] would resurface in the 1980s, during his disagreement with Manuel Quintana Castillo, advocating for creation ahead of experimentation. Vigas establishes differences between “search” and “discovery” in creative processes (M. C. “Destesto la palabra busqueda” [I Hate the Word Search] in El Nacional, Caracas, October 18, 1984, C-18) and the article by Vigas, “Lo que se tiene no se busca…” [You Do Not Search for What You Have] published in El Universal, Caracas, November 2, 1984, 4-1). With regard to his work, see the ICAA digital archive for texts by Marta Traba as well as Roberto Guevara [“Oswaldo Vigas/Pinturas 1943–1973” [Oswaldo Vigas/Paintings 1943–1973] (doc. no. 1106962)  and “Vigas: proceso abierto” [Vigas: Open Process] (doc. no. 1152753), respectively].