Don Báez, the licensee of Uruguay’s country brand, awarded to the pieces of artists Pati Fernández and Claudia Casarino at EsteArte. 

EsteArte, the renowned international art fair in Uruguay, held its 10th edition in early January at the Vik Pavilion in José Ignacio with an attendance of over 5,000 people. The fair introduced two new awards that strengthened Uruguay's artistic work, one of which was presented by the Uruguayan clothing brand based on fine and undyed wool, Don Báez, the licensee of Uruguay’s country's brand. 

The recognition went to Uruguayan artist Pati Fernández for her untitled work from the Small Data 2023 series, an acrylic and spray on canvas measuring 100x150 centimeters, and to Peruvian artist Claudia Casarino for her charcoal and gold leaf drawings on Granada 2023 and Koku 2023 linen. 

This inaugural edition of the Don Báez Acquisition Award included the purchase of these works exhibited at EsteArte for a value of USD 10,000. The award was entirely funded by Claudia and Diana Weiss, entrepreneurs, collectors, and art enthusiasts, owners of the Uruguayan clothing brand. 

The director of EsteArte, Laura Bardier, told El Observador that this will be the inaugural piece of the Don Báez corporate collection. "For me, this is extremely important for several reasons. First, because Don Báez is a family-owned, Uruguayan company, not a technological unicorn; it operates on a human scale, selling quality products with special care for nature, and so it aligns perfectly with the kind of things we do. Claudia and Diana are visionaries; I hope that inspires other entrepreneurs and people from civil society to invest in art. They buy works with continuity, consistency, and commitment," Bardier said to the media. 

Pati Fernández (Uruguay 1968) began her career in painting, gradually moving towards more sculptural work and creating installations of various dimensions. Her work is characterized by the use of vibrant colors in flat forms that stem from her personal research on art. The artist has exhibited in different cities around the world since 2009, and her work is found in private collections in Uruguay, Argentina, Brazil, the United States, and France, among others. 

Additionally, the organization awarded the Laetitia Prize, which recognizes individuals and organizations dedicated to the creation and dissemination of art in Uruguay and is named in honor of Laetitia d'Aremberg, one of the main patrons of culture in Uruguay. 

On this occasion, the award went to Ama Amoedo, in recognition of her commitment to art. 

The EsteArte Cultural Summit and Art Fair offered a carefully curated selection of galleries that showcased their most prominent artists, chosen exclusively. In this edition, collaborations were made with Uruguayan galleries Black Gallery (Garzón), Galería del Paseo (Manantiales, Lima), Galería Sur (La Barra), Walden Naturae (Garzón), and Xippas (Paris, Geneva, Punta del Este), as well as international galleries such as María Casado Home Gallery (Buenos Aires), Quimera (Buenos Aires), Aninat Galería (Santiago de Chile, Mexico City), BM Art Gallery (Cadaqués), Galería del Infinito (Buenos Aires), Galería Espacio O (Santiago de Chile), Galerie Sophie Scheidecker (Paris), and Galleria Vik (Milano).