Somos Libres II featured works from Testino’s personal art collection including artists such as Tauba Auerbach, Richard Avedon, Cecil Beaton, Glenn Ligon, Jonathan Monk, Ugo Rondinone, Cindy Sherman, Adriana Varejão, and Andy Warhol. This second presentation of Somos Libres – having first been exhibited at MATE in 2013 (Testino’s cultural institution in Lima, Peru) – took on a new guise focusing on the tension between the medium of photography and abstract painting in Testino’s collection, as well as Testino’s personal journey through the world of contemporary art.
Of the concept for Somos Libres, Testino says “Our national anthem in Peru starts with ‘Somos libres seamoslo siempre,’ which means let’s always be free. When Peru gained independence from Spain, we were freed as a country to exist and to discover our own identity. It’s this attitude of liberation and of freedom from external constraints that I am inspired by most in fine artists and applies here in this show.”