Gonzalo Contreras Del Solar

Gonzalo Contreras del Solar is a Bolivian fine art photographer born in La Paz, Bolivia, whose work has focused on water as a central subject for more than five decades.

His early connection to water began in the landscapes of Bolivia, where the high Andes, the Yungas region, waterfalls, mist, and changing light left a lasting visual impression. These experiences became the foundation of a lifelong photographic exploration.

Since 1977, he has traveled to more than forty countries across multiple continents, documenting water in its diverse forms — from glaciers and mountain waterfalls to coastal environments, reflections, and abstract surface patterns. His work explores water not only as a visual subject, but also as a vital and fragile natural element.

His photographic practice combines medium-format film and contemporary high-resolution digital systems. Working in both color and black and white, he produces large-format fine art prints, often exceeding 100 cm, using archival pigment inks and Hahnemühle papers.

Influenced in part by Ansel Adams and Vincent van Gogh, Contreras del Solar brings together technical precision, tonal structure, movement, and a painterly sensibility.
He lives and works in Calera de Tango, Chile.

Instituto Technológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey - Mexico

Gonzalo Contreras del Solar has presented his work in solo and group exhibitions across Latin America, North America, and Europe since the 1980s, with a sustained focus on water as a central visual and conceptual subject.

Solo Exhibitions

1996 — Water
Instituto Chileno Norteamericano, Santiago, Chile

2001 — It’s Only Water
Corporación Cultural de Las Condes, Santiago, Chile

2003 — Water As-Is
Corporación Cultural de Las Condes, Santiago, Chile

2004 — Nearby Waters
FotoAmérica, Mall Plaza Oeste, Santiago, Chile

2004 — Waters of the World
FotoAmérica, Edificio Huidobro, Santiago, Chile

2006 — Waters of the World in Blue
Icebox Gallery, Miami, USA

2006 — Sabattier Revisited
Corporación Cultural de Las Condes, Santiago, Chile

2006 — Waters of the World 2
ArsLatino, Santiago, Chile

2006 — The Water
FotoAmérica, Museo Rancagua, Chile

2008 — I’m Water
Galería Isabel Aninat, Santiago, Chile

2008 — De l’Aigua (with poems by Gonzalo Rojas)
Museu Agbar, Barcelona, Spain

2016 — Del Agua (with poems by Gonzalo Rojas)
Corporación Cultural El Tranque, Santiago, Chile

Group Exhibitions (Selected)

1984 — Water
Goethe Institut, La Paz, Bolivia

2004 — My Beach
Galería M2, Santiago, Chile

2004 — Digital Photography
Inter-American Deve...