Alfonso Ossorio: Line and Lineage

A fresh perspective on an understudied artist who engaged with avant-garde circles throughout the 20th century and remains a catalyst for artists today

Filipino American artist Alfonso Ossorio (1916–1990) is celebrated for his detailed woodcuts and ink drawings, as well as for his sculptural assemblages of found objects. His allusive art draws on themes such as birth, death, sex, and Catholicism. This focused volume explores the recurrent subject matter, favored materials, and development of linear form in prints, drawings, and wax-resist paintings that span the artist’s six-decade practice. Highlighting new scholarship on Ossorio’s works on paper, the book approaches the works from both art historical and technical perspectives. The book positions Ossorio alongside the artists with whom he exchanged ideas during his lifetime, such as Jean Dubuffet, Jackson Pollock, and Clyfford Still, as well as in the context of contemporary artists for whom he has been a source of inspiration. The book includes a conversation with the artist duo Enzo Camacho and Ami Lien, whose work in the 2026 Whitney Biennial is directly influenced by their engagement with the themes and materials of Ossorio’s art.

Distributed for the Harvard Art Museums

Exhibition schedule:

Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, MA

(October 23, 2026–April 11, 2027)