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FRANCISCO MASÓ

Documentary Abstraction

June 14 – July 19, 2025

Francisco Masó Page 03. Volume IV. Tome I, 2022

Francisco Masó
Page 03. Volume IV. Tome I, 2022
Aesthetic Register of Covert Forces
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó Page 03. Volume II. Tome I, 2017

Francisco Masó
Page 03. Volume II. Tome I, 2017
Aesthetic Register of Covert Forces
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó Page 09. Volume V. Tome I, 2020

Francisco Masó
Page 09. Volume V. Tome I, 2020
Aesthetic Register of Covert Forces
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó Page 06. Volume V. Tome I, 2018

Francisco Masó
Page 06. Volume V. Tome I, 2018
Aesthetic Register of Covert Forces
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó Page 10. Volume V. Tome I, 2017

Francisco Masó
Page 10. Volume V. Tome I, 2017
Aesthetic Register of Covert Forces
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó Page 04. Volume II. Tome I, 2017

Francisco Masó
Page 04. Volume II. Tome I, 2017
Aesthetic Register of Covert Forces
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó Page 12. Volume V. Tome I, 2024

Francisco Masó
Page 12. Volume V. Tome I, 2024
Aesthetic Register of Covert Forces
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó Page 14. Volume IV. Tome I, 2022

Francisco Masó
Page 14. Volume IV. Tome I, 2022
Aesthetic Register of Covert Forces
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó Page 13. Volume IV. Tome I, 2022

Francisco Masó
Page 13. Volume IV. Tome I, 2022
Aesthetic Register of Covert Forces
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó Page 05. Volume V. Tome I, 2025

Francisco Masó
Page 05. Volume V. Tome I, 2025
Aesthetic Register of Covert Forces
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó Page 15. Volume V. Tome I, 2025

Francisco Masó
Page 15. Volume V. Tome I, 2025
Aesthetic Register of Covert Forces
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó Page 02. Volume V. Tome I, 2025

Francisco Masó
Page 02. Volume V. Tome I, 2025
Aesthetic Register of Covert Forces
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó Page 17. Volume V. Tome I, 2025

Francisco Masó
Page 17. Volume V. Tome I, 2025
Aesthetic Register of Covert Forces
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó Page 17. Volume IV. Tome I, 2025

Francisco Masó
Page 17. Volume IV. Tome I, 2025
Aesthetic Register of Covert Forces
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó Page 16. Volume IV. Tome I, 2017

Francisco Masó
Page 16. Volume IV. Tome I, 2017
Aesthetic Register of Covert Forces
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó Page 18. Volume IV. Tome I, 2017

Francisco Masó
Page 18. Volume IV. Tome I, 2017
Aesthetic Register of Covert Forces
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó Page 18. Volume V. Tome I, 2025

Francisco Masó
Page 18. Volume V. Tome I, 2025
Aesthetic Register of Covert Forces
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó Page 03. Volume V. Tome I, 2022

Francisco Masó
Page 03. Volume V. Tome I, 2022
Aesthetic Register of Covert Forces
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó Page 19. Volume IV. Tome I, 2020

Francisco Masó
Page 19. Volume IV. Tome I, 2020
Aesthetic Register of Covert Forces
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó Page 15. Volume IV. Tome I, 2020

Francisco Masó
Page 15. Volume IV. Tome I, 2020
Aesthetic Register of Covert Forces
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó Page 01. Volume IV. Tome I, 2022

Francisco Masó
Page 01. Volume IV. Tome I, 2022
Aesthetic Register of Covert Forces
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó Page 20. Volume V. Tome I, 2020

Francisco Masó
Page 20. Volume V. Tome I, 2020
Aesthetic Register of Covert Forces
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó Page 18. Volume III. Tome I, 2017

Francisco Masó
Page 18. Volume III. Tome I, 2017
Aesthetic Register of Covert Forces
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó 126294168_200202504917257_2877219705312075567_n, 2025

Francisco Masó
126294168_200202504917257_2877219705312075567_n, 2025
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó 469797912_1138994077573485_5211212517982079216_n, 2025

Francisco Masó
469797912_1138994077573485_5211212517982079216_n, 2025
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó 475132338_1172303764242516_8069151745582834033_n, 2025

Francisco Masó
475132338_1172303764242516_8069151745582834033_n, 2025
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó AP050713017700, 2025

Francisco Masó
AP050713017700, 2025
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó GI124158581, 2025

Francisco Masó
GI124158581, 2025
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó 257579940_10220232841392928_166563844437351877_n, 2025

Francisco Masó
257579940_10220232841392928_166563844437351877_n, 2025
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó G197903234, 2025

Francisco Masó
G197903234, 2025
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó GI1236567344, 2025

Francisco Masó
GI1236567344, 2025
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó IMG_5374, 2025

Francisco Masó
IMG_5374, 2025
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó IMG_7844, 2025

Francisco Masó
IMG_7844, 2025
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Francisco Masó Screenshot-2025-04-09-at-12.41.22pm, 2025

Francisco Masó
Screenshot-2025-04-09-at-12.41.22pm, 2025
Acrylic on canvas
25 x 21 in (63.5 x 53.3 cm)

Press Release

Luis De Jesus Los Angeles is pleased to present Francisco Masó: Documentary Abstraction, the Cuban conceptual artist's first solo exhibition in Los Angeles. The exhibition runs June 14 through July 19, 2025, with an opening reception on Saturday, June 14 from 4–7 p.m.

Francisco Masó: Documentary Abstraction brings together new works from Masó's ongoing series Aesthetic Register of Covert Forces. The series establishes a catalog and archive of acrylic on canvas paintings which serves as an abstract geometric guide for identifying the forces of power within a state control apparatus while simultaneously generating discourse on the militarization of Cuban civil society.

The development of Aesthetic Register of Covert Forces started with Masó's search for information about protests against the Cuban government. Through his ongoing research of documentary photographs found on the dark web capturing scenes of repression in Cuba where political forces confront civil resistance groups, Masó has identified recurring linear color patterns in the clothing worn by the secret police. These garments are striped polo shirts imported by the Cuban government and distributed among various law enforcement institutions to their political officers as a work incentive. Their use is inconspicuous, creating a subtle yet unconscious distinction between those who wear them and those who do not. Masó replicates and reimagines these exact polo shirt patterns in paint, transforming their colors and stripes into recognizable symbols. Masó's paintings of textiles amplify records of a different pattern—a pattern of openly vigilant, oppressive behaviors—and effectively shifts the power dynamics through exposure and visibility of such patterns. Consequently, Masó's photo-investigative approach can be regarded as a form of counterintelligence.

Documentary Abstraction contextualizes Masó's practice within the broader history of abstraction while highlighting through photography its intersection with political agency. The exhibition unfolds through a dynamic display across interconnected key moments, each offering a distinct entry point into the artist’s investigation of power, surveillance, and systemic violence. The paintings in Aesthetic Register of Covert Forces can be placed within a lineage of modern Latin American geometric abstraction and abstraction produced by 20th century artists such as Josef Albers, Blinky Palermo, Agnes Martin, and Rosemarie Trockel—artists who employ a critical lens to disrupt power dynamics. In the same way that Albers observes and studies colors, Masó examines photos made by bystanders and anti-government forces—records of political protest, of different gatherings and meetings—and perceives a certain repetition that stands out, even if it is barely perceptible in the visible field.

Francisco Masó (b. 1988, Havana, Cuba) is an AfroLatinx artist living and working in Miami. He received a Bachelor’s degree in Stage Design from the Instituto Superior de Arte, Havana (2014). He also graduated from both Behavior Art School (2009), led by Tania Bruguera, and the San Alejandro Academy of Fine Arts (2007). Recent solo exhibitions include Who Kills Ai Weiwei? at Dimensions Variable, Miami, FL (2022), and Where’s Your Favorite Place for Political Art at Home? at Locust Projects, Miami, FL (2021), and Dimensions Variable, Miami, FL (2020). Selected group exhibitions include Counter/Surveillance: Control, Privacy, Agency at The Wende Museum, Culver City, CA (2024-2025), Our Sway at Ringling Museum of Art, Sarasota, FL (2025), Movements Toward Freedom at MCA Denver, CO (2024), You Belong Here: Place, People, and Purpose in Latinx Photography at Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum, Sarasota, FL (2024), Paint the Protest at Off Paradise, New York, NY, organized by Nancy Spector, and Time for Change: Art and Social Unrest in the Jorge M. Pérez Collection at El Espacio 23, Miami, FL (2019). He has participated in residencies at the Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts (2024), the Hayama Artist Residency (2022), the Anderson Ranch Arts Center (2022), and Artist in Residence in the Everglades (2022), and the Oolite Arts’ Home + Away Residency at Atlantic Center for the Arts (2020). Maso is a 2022 and 2020 Ellies Creator Award winner by Oolite Arts, a 2021 South Florida Cultural Consortium grant recipient, and a 2022 DV—AIRIE Award winner.

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