Among the guests at the inauguration of the show was Colombia´s Minister of Culture Ramiro Osorio Fonseco, who traveled to Washington especially for the occasion.

The exhibit, "Points of Departure in Contemporary Colombian Art," salutes Colombia and the city of Cartagena de Indias, which will host the Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors March 16-18.

Thanks to the invaluable help from several private and public institutions, artists and collectors, the IDB's Cultural Center was able to assemble works of an unusually high quality. Several pieces will be shown outside their country of origin for the first time.

"Points of Departure" consists of 27 paintings, sculptures and graphic works by Colombian masters Alejandro Obregón, Enrique Grau, Edgar Negret and Eduardo Ramírez Villamizar, as well as of eight works by artists of a previous generation.

Concurrently with the inaugural ceremony, IDB President Enrique V. Iglesias presented master artist Enrique Grau with a plaque commemorating his 58 years of professional work and collaboration with cultural activities of the IDB.

The show's curator, Félix Angel, noted that Obregón, Grau, Negret and Ramírez Villamizar had opened new paths for Colombian art, which up to the 1950s had remained largely isolated from the world's major stylistic movements.

Their break with the traditional figurative styles to embrace abstraction created an atmosphere of cultural freedom, while their exceptional talent gained respect for Colombian art in international circles, paving the way for future generations of artists.

"The creativity of these four pioneers made possible the great diversity and vitality of Colombian art today," Angel wrote in an essay prepared for the exhibit's catalogue.

The exhibit will remain open to the public from Monday to Friday between 11 a.m. and 6 p.m. until May 1 at the IDB's Cultural Center, 1300 New York Ave, NW, Washington, DC.