Manolo Valdés was born in Valencia on March 8, 1942.
He entered the Escuela de Bellas Artes de San Carlos in 1957, where he studied for two years. In 1964 he founded the group of artists Equipo Crónica with Joan Toledo and Rafael Solbes in which he remained until Solbes' death in 1981. Influenced by Velàsquez, Rembrandt, Rubens, Matisse, Picasso, Valdés creates large works in which lighting and colors express a sensation of tactility. His work is powerful and decorated with symbols of historical art. Valdés creates paintings, monumental sculptures, etchings and collages.
Along with the works he exhibited as part of Equipo Crónicas, Valdés held over seventy exhibitions between 1965 and 1981, both solo and collective. His work has been exhibited in prestigious art galleries and museums, notably in the Guggenheim in New York, the Opera Gallery in New York, the Hirschhorn in Washington, and in numerous art capitals of the world such as London, Berlin, Paris, Milan, Rome, Seoul, Istanbul, The Hague, Munich.
He has received various awards, including the Lissone and the Biella of Milan in 1965; the silver medal at the second Tokyo International Print Biennial; an award from the Bridgestone Art Museum in Lisbon; the Alfons Roig Prize in Valencia; the National Prize for the Plastic Arts in Spain; a medal from the biennial Baghdad International Festival of Plastic Arts; and in 1993 the Medal of the Order of Andrés Bello in Venezuela.
He currently lives and works in New York City with additional residency in The Hamptons and Miami.
