Francis Lao Costa

Biography

A life between engineering and art.

Personal life

The beginnings

Francis Lao Costa was born in Terrassa, Barcelona, Spain in 1945. On March 10, 1971 he married Roser Vives Bacardit, a very important person in his life.

He studied engineering, specializing in textile finishing, being the author of patents for the treatment of natural and synthetic fibers, with facilities in all continents and in most countries of the world.
Professional experience

Contributions to development

Of particular relevance are his studies on the bleaching of high-pressure polyester synthetics with small molecules for NASA (1980-1984). Also noteworthy are their accomplishments and contribution to technology for the manufacture of the world famous "mop" of non-woven strips and baths with specific finishes for their use (1982-1989).

Its contribution is remarkable, during the period from 1986 to 1989, to the development of biological treatment plants with optimum results at a time when only physico-chemical processes were installed. Right now these wastewater treatment plants are commonplace.
Artistic work

Influences

In 1990 he became involved with Catalan and Spanish great painters of the avant-garde of the time; 'Dau al Set' in Barcelona and 'El Paso' in Madrid, and at the same time began his studies in Fine Arts at Sant Cugat (Barcelona).

The earliest pictorial influences where Post Cubism and he began to develop Cubist Expressionism, which led him to hold his first solo exhibition in Sant Cugat (Barcelona), as well as Miami (Florida, USA) and Santa Fe (California, USA).

It just so happens that…
Continue
reading
…

Artistic works

[…continued from previous page]

One of the works presented in Miami was based on a Van Gogh black and white drawing made with Chinese ink in 1894, which Francis turned into a cubist piece and an explosion of life and color took over the space-time (1995). This work, for three months, was a tour of most schools in Miami, as a didactic work to help children understand the evolution of art. It is currently at the Florida Museum of Hispanic and Latin American Art in Coral Beach, Florida.

After his trip in 1995, he began preparing his later works with a dose of abstraction - never omitting a subjacent meaning - specially excelling his Central Park forests and Manhattan representations.

The exhibition of these works began at the Galerie Hervouet in Paris, annexed to the Picasso Museum in Marais.
Artistic origins

Moving to Andorra

Due to professional engineering reasons, which he never left, he moved to the Principality of Andorra in 1988, beginning to investigate the application of light and its dissection in countless colors using LED light.

The results were spectacular and an intellectual property patent was granted by the Catalan Government. After more than 25 years, prestigious sculptors from around the world still continue to use this technique. Francis Lao Costa presented these sculptures at a large exhibition at 'La Caixa' Foundation in Terrassa, Barcelona in 1999.

It was in Andorra where Francis finally passed away on March 17, 2019.
Fusion of engineering with art

Application

In order to demonstrate the effect that two million colors may have on an artwork, he determined that light had to reflect on a surface that absorbed it, then transformed and multiplied. At this point he decided to start working with glass and crystal molten through a mold, just as bronze is melt. Liquid glass, at temperatures of 800 to 1600 degrees Celsius, has to warm in special chambers for days until it reaches room temperature.

These pieces are polished with diamond powder, to achieve the finish that imbues the viewer with what the artist wants to convey.