In 1958, Industrias Kaiser Argentina (IKA), headquartered in the province of Córdoba, launched the I Salón IKA [1st IKA Salon], to give greater exposure to local artists and their work. The Salon was originally limited to artists from Córdoba, but in the four subsequent editions the scope was widened to include artists from other provinces as well. In 1961, IKA decided to expand the parameters of the event to include the whole country, and organized an international, biennial painting contest. These Latin American Art Biennials were not only promotional vehicles for IKA, they were also an expression of the company’s Pan-American policy, endorsed and promoted by the Organization of American States (OAS). The 2nd Biennial opened on September 25, 1964, and ran through October 12 of the same year, at the campus of the National University of Córdoba. Artists from Uruguay, Brazil, and Chile were invited to the first Biennial and, as the organizers had previously announced, the objective was to steadily increase the number of participating countries. They were pleased therefore that this latest installment included artists from Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, and Venezuela. In addition to establishing the rules concerning the artists’ participation in the Biennial, the document also explains the function of the jury—not just as regards its role in the contest, but in the selection of works that will subsequently go on tour outside the country. The organizers of the Biennial thus appeared to be fulfilling their objective to increase the number of countries involved, to introduce Latin American art into the international circuit, and to position Argentina as an increasingly important center for the arts.
