Rufino Tamayo

Do you own a piece by Rufino Tamayo and would you like to know more about the work and its value? Our Experts will carry out a free appraisal of your painting, provide you with an estimate of the market price, and help you to sell it at the best price.

Status, estimation and price of the artist Rufino Tamayo

Price of a painting: 500 – 4,100,000 €.

Estimation of a drawing: 580 – 141,300 €.

Estimation of a sculpture: 57,800-291,000 €.

Price of a tapestry: 1,200-1,500 €.

If you would like to have a work by Rufino Tamayo appraised, our experts will take care of everything.

Rufino Tamayo, a unique artist

Rufino Tamayo was born at the turn of the 20th century in the city of Oaxaca, Mexico. The Church has a special importance in his life and work, as it develops in him a sensitivity for images and a pronounced taste for colour. The academism of the Fine Arts quickly wearied him. When he was appointed to the Archaeological Museum in Mexico City in 1921, the artist studied pre-Hispanic art, which greatly influenced his artistic production. The artist experimented freely and quickly became known for his verve and originality. Tamayo was part of the post-revolutionary cultural movement and quickly detached himself from the muralists, even if he did not completely dissociate himself from the political and sociological considerations of his time.

Throughout his career, Tamayo has done some twenty paintings in monumental format for Mexican public spaces, including Prometheus setting the world on fire, 1958 for UNESCO.

Between East and West

It was in 1926 that he discovered the European avant-gardes and began easel painting. When he moved to New York in 1937, the muralists considered him a “snob”. However, success was not long in coming to the American city, both for his talent and his status as a cultural ambassador.

His painting is close to a “European” style in its use of materials, but also by its play of textures and colours, to be compared with Miro’s paintings.

His vision of the human body and his representation of it is allegorical, cosmic and subject to all mysteries.

Tamayo’s career was marked by encounters, such as the one with André Breton, who wrote the preface to his first Parisian exhibition in 1950, and his various techniques, such as lithography and engraving in 1951. Nevertheless, the artist remains conscious of and invested in his “Mexicanity”.

His talent is recognised throughout the world and numerous consecrations have taken place throughout his career, such as the retrospective exhibition dedicated to him by the Musée d’art moderne de la Ville de Paris in 1974, but also at the Guggenheim Museum in 1979 and at the Museo de Arte contemporeano international Rufino Tamayo in 1987 in Mexico City, which symbolises the recognition of his own country for his work.

His work crosses the centuries and is rooted in Western modernity, but also in traditional Mesoamerican art, as a point of convergence between cultures.

Recognising Rufino Tamayo’s signature

Like many artists, Rufino Tamayo did not sign all of his works. However, you will find below an example of the signatures to give you an idea. Variations of these signatures do exist, do not hesitate to contact one of our experts to formally authenticate a signature.

Appraise and sell a painting by Rufino Tamayo

If you own a Rufino Tamayo painting or any other sculpture, ask for a free estimate via our online form.

You will then be contacted by a member of our team of experts and auctioneers to give you an independent view of the market price of your painting. In the event of a sale, our specialists will also advise you on the various options available to sell your work at the best price.