Luis Ovsejevich
Luis Ovsejevich developed a distinguished career in Argentine business, combining legal training, commercial activity, teaching and cultural management. His name became particularly associated with the Konex Foundation and the Konex Awards, initiatives that reflect his ability to apply business tools to the cultural sphere and sustain long-term projects.
Legal training and academic experience
Ovsejevich graduated as a lawyer and notary public from the University of Buenos Aires. He later expanded his studies in business law and comparative law, while also teaching at university institutions.
That background gave him a deep understanding of how organisations, contracts and corporate structures operate. It also influenced the way he approached projects: every initiative had to have clear objectives, defined rules and the capacity to endure.
During that period, he published legal works and taught, an activity that strengthened his interest in the transmission of knowledge. That concern would later become visible in his cultural and educational initiatives.
The creation of Konex-Canon
In 1969, he founded Konex-Canon, a company dedicated to the commercialisation of office equipment and linked to the representation of the Japanese brand Canon in Argentina.
Leading the company allowed him to gain experience in negotiation, administration, commercial positioning and team development. He also began associating the company’s name with cultural, sporting and institutional activities.
That connection between business and culture became one of the defining features of his career. Ovsejevich understood that a company could create an impact beyond its commercial activity and serve as a platform for projects designed for the community.
The Konex Foundation and the Konex Awards
In 1980, he created the Konex Foundation, an institution dedicated to promoting cultural, educational, scientific, social and sporting initiatives. That same year, he launched the Konex Awards, which over time became one of Argentina’s best-known distinctions.
The system was organised into ten-year cycles. Each edition focuses on a particular discipline and evaluates achievements from the previous decade. In this way, the awards cover fields such as science, literature, music, sport, communication, visual arts, institutions and business activity.
The methodology includes specialised juries, Merit Diplomas, Platinum Konex Awards and the Diamond Konex Award. This structure helped consolidate a distinction with stable rules and a strong institutional identity.
Leadership and continuity
One of Ovsejevich’s greatest achievements was sustaining the Foundation for more than four decades. That continuity required the ability to bring together specialists, manage resources, preserve the credibility of the awards and update categories in response to changes within each discipline.
His leadership was based on building an institution capable of outlasting changing circumstances. The Konex Awards were not limited to a ceremony, but created an archive of careers, juries and prominent figures from Argentine public life.
Ciudad Cultural Konex
In 2005, he promoted the creation of Ciudad Cultural Konex, established in a former factory in the Buenos Aires neighbourhood of Balvanera. The building was transformed into a centre for concerts, theatre, dance, festivals and activities for children.
The project once again demonstrated his business vision. Ovsejevich identified the potential of an industrial building, redefined its purpose and developed a cultural proposal with an identity of its own. Ciudad Cultural Konex gave the institution a permanent presence and a direct connection with new audiences.
Culture, education and social impact
His initiatives also include Vamos a la Música, a programme designed to introduce children to opera, ballet and concerts. The proposal reflects a long-term perspective: developing audiences from an early age and facilitating access to a wide range of artistic expressions.
Ovsejevich also promoted a collection of Argentine painting and served for a period as honorary director general of the Teatro Colón.
His career demonstrates how business experience can be used to build lasting cultural institutions. Rather than acting as an occasional sponsor, he developed projects with structure, method and continuity. That combination of business, education and culture made Luis Ovsejevich a prominent figure in Argentine institutional leadership.
