Mauro Corda

Opera Gallery Paris is pleased to present an exhibition of Mauro Corda's new scultpures from the 7^th of December 2012 to the 3^rd of January 2013.

During his more than fourteen-year collaboration with Mauro Corda, Opera Gallery Group has been exhibited the artist's works among its international network of 11 galleries.

First devoted to sculpting the human body, Mauro Corda has then tackled the human face before experimenting with the personification of animals. His new series relies on the theme of voluptuousness. It is our pleasure to offer another opportunity for respite in the unique and imaginative kingdom of Mauro Corda's masterpiece.

Corda’s love of sculpture prevailed at the tender of age 15 having enrolled at the Beaux-Arts in Reims. He then continued his technical training at the Paris Beaux-Arts where he won first prize, and with that the beginning of his somewhat tumultuous friendship with Jean Cardot. At 23 Corda tragically lost his elder brother Salvatore in an unexpected accident. Following this, his works became imbued with much more pain; lowered heads, cast down eyes almost in tears, and open hands. Corda met his wife Alicia following his acceptance to Casa Velázquez in Madrid. At this point his sculptures developed a harshness which originated with the death of his brother. A fondness of male love, absence, contemplation and androgyny dominated his works. Corda’s success blossomed in the early nineties with the timeless truthfulness of his works overcoming the ready-mades of the period.

As a sculpture, Corda incorporates colours such as chrome silver, gilding and paint into his bronze art forms. In search of greater dimensions, his sculptures have moved on to other materials, such as aluminium and iron. Influenced by his time in the Italian Pietrasanta, he has also introduced marble and terra cotta into his work. His incredible command over the materials develops them into profound pieces of art.

Corda’s shifting of materials lead back to his vision to portray persons in the most diverse roles, environments, and situations. His expressiveness is far too powerful to be portrayed by a single material. These figures create a continual dialogue between revealing space and man, offering a powerful visual exchange.

Graff the peace!

Opera Gallery hosts in its Parisian gallery the exhibition Graff the Peace!, dedicated to street art, from September 13 to October 6, 2012. A simultaneous exhibition Graff the War! takes place in the former Laennec military hospital.

Choosing to present works in different places allows to deal with two opposite, and though deeply connected, topics. Internationally renowed artists from different countries and generations have been invited to work on the themes of "war" and "peace".

Therefore, the exhibition features artpieces from the French artists Blek le Rat and Speedy Graphito, or the American Shepard Fairey and Seen. Next to the artworks of those sought-after artists, visitors are able to discover the vision of younger yet talented artists such as Nick Walker, Saber, Tilt or Icy and Sot.

Different artworks, different points of view on the war/peace topic, but also different techniques, from spraypaint to collage, silkscreen and indelible ink, or military helmets.

A unique occasion to discover the large panel of artistic interpretation that the world of street art is able to create.

I want to be loved by you / Tribute to Marilyn Monroe

May 25 – June 17, 2012

The year 2012 is sadly marked by the fiftieth anniversary of the death of Marilyn Monroe. In homage to one of the greatest icons of the twentieth century, Opera Gallery presents a collective exhibition on the theme of Marilyn Monroe. Presenting works of more than thirty artists carried by the gallery, this exhibition brings together as many artists as the ways of perceiving the subject, illustrating the multiple facets of the Hollywood star. The merging of the two universe is not accidental, with Marilyn herself being an actress, comedian, singer and a public figure in one.

Marilyn passed away in 1962. Fifty years after, we gather at this exhibition to revive the spirit of Marilyn Monroe and all that she represents. An exuberant femininity, a fragility that is hardly concealed, a smile that never fails, the blonde hairdo, the white dress that is blown up unawares, and many more other elements that are revived, employed and appropriated by the artists in celebration of Marilyn Monroe. The star is a symbol of glamour as well as Pop Art since Andy Warhol immortalized her with his numerous serigraphs in the sixties. These works unite the essence of these two American icons and symbols of the avant-garde, which the image is known across the decades and the Atlantic.

At the occasion of the exhibition I want to be loved by you at Opera Gallery Paris, works of acclaimed street artists such as Mr. Brainwash (France), The London Police (UK) and FenX (France) are exhibited along side the reputed contemporary photographers with the likes of the photographer Gérard Rancinan (France), Paul Slade (USA) and Nick de Morgoli (France/USA), as well as the incontrovertible figure of the New Realism Mimmo Rotella (Italy). The exhibited works are not limited to the American and European vision of the subject, as works by Iran artist Reza Derakshani and Chinese artist Zeng Fanzhi are among others whose works are equally inspired by the personage of Marilyn Monroe.

With a mingle of different medium and all formats possible, each artist speaks and translates through their works the personality of Marilyn Monroe. The result is a beautiful tribute and a startling artistic visit.

Collection of Masters, a century of Modern Art

6 – 27 April 2012

The exhibition ‘‘Collection of Masters, a century of Modern Art’’, unveils the fundamental part of the Opera Gallery art collection. It retraces the history of Modern Art through an exquisite selection of paintings, sculptures and drawings that best represents the epoque.

Modern Art, the significant and dominant movement of art in the 19th and 20th, comprises of several major art movements, such as Fauvism, Cubism, Surrealism, Abstraction... At this special occasion, Opera Gallery Paris is going to present a collection of works of European modern masters, as well as the artists who came before and after, showing the strong influences between all of them. Modern Art, here, is seen as a totality with its « pre- » and « post-» movements, beyond its historical definition, its official dates, and its incontrovertible members of artist. The selected works cover a period starting from Post-Impressionism to New Realism.

The beginning of the century is marked by Dufy’s typical pastoral scenes and Miró’s dream-like painting, as well as the distinguished figures of the surrealists.

From the abstract works by Miró, the exhibition continues with more figurative artists, some of them even unclassifiable, such as Chagall, whose art does not fall into the category of the dominant art movements of the time. Highlighted works include the oil on canvas dated 1952, La Fiancée rêvant. Bernard Buffet, another artist whose style falls outside the dominant trend, and whose works constitute a huge part of our collection, is also one of the artists presented in the exhibition, with the highlight of this portrait, Tête de femme sur fond jaune, 1967, as well as Barque à marée basse, 1999, presenting a landscape of Normandy that is totally emblematic of Buffet’s oeuvre, one of the most beloved subjects of the artist as he used to own a house where he spent most of his time. Another much revered master, Pablo Picasso, thanks whom officially started the Modern Art movement in 1907 with the work Demoiselle d’Avignon, is presented in this exhibition through a varied selection of his works which includes still lifes and his most renowned portraits such as Homme à la pipe, 1969.

In attempt to respond to the insatiable question of how to define Modern Art, this show, through the presentation of various selected works, illustrates that Modern Art has been always committed to the present and historically, sociologically, technically challenged.

We hope that this exhibition of exceptional works of the masters will rekindle the enthusiasm of the visitors towards these important figures of Modern Art history through the discovery of our collection of masters.

Lita Cabellut / Coco Chanel

October 14th – November 19th 2011

Coco Chanel as never seen before...

Lita Cabellut is an artist of Gypsy origin who, like Coco Chanel, has followed a rather extraordinary path. With her latest exhibition, she perfectly and subtly translates the psychological intricacy of one of the world’s most famous fashion figures, interpreting the designer’s dark, mysterious side and bright, luminous soul: so many testimonies of Chanel’s love of black and white which became her signature.

Through this series of 35 colossal portraits, the artist has - enfin! - freed the fashion icon from her glamorous stereotype, just as Coco Chanel changed the world by ridding women’s fashion from the confines of the corset in the 20s, leaving a legacy of pure elegance.
Opera Gallery, an international art network that will soon boast 13 prestigious galleries around the globe, has been supporting Lita Cabellut and introducing her incredible talent to art institutions and collectors the world over for several years.

> see Cabellut exhibition

RANCINAN

March 25 - April 16 2011 - Opera Gallery

Opera Gallery pays tribute to the visual imagination of Gérard Rancinan with a first run of three extraordinary series of his photographic work.

Experience the exclusive world premiere of “Décadence”, the artist’s latest visual production and one of the most phantasmagorical. Rancinan thus concludes his “Metamorphoses” series with the entire collection exhibited for the first time ever.

This series of larger-than-life photos is the artist’s committed testimonial of the mutations shaking our world today. Inspired by eight artistic masterpieces, Rancinan revisits mankind’s most ancient and significant interrogations, and realizes how important these issues remain today. Inspired by Le Caravage, Bosch, De Vinci, Velasquez, Géricault, Delacroix, Matisse and the Isenheim Altarpiece, Rancinan provides, with his unique, vivid genius, a subjective and yet strongly symbolic report on the planet’s most profound questions against a backdrop of accelerated globalization: ecology, migration, emancipation of the oppressed, freedom and basic human rights, starvation and fast-food, genetics and our quest for eternal youth, ethnic and economic war...
To produce «Décadence», Rancinan drew his inspiration from «Romans in the Decadence of the Empire” by Thomas Couture. The result is a baroque and ultra-modern panorama where incarnations of paganism and syncretism surrender themselves to the most troubling of debaucheries.
“Hypotheses”, exhibited for the first time ever, carries us far beyond the merely historical. In each image, what remains of civilization is hermetically protected in a bubble, reminding us of life’s trials and tribulations, absurdities, excesses but also...of hope. These bubbles seem to be floating elsewhere, miniature time machines that may generate new life in a new (and better?) world.

This exhibition is also the perfect opportunity to discover Rancinan’s most exquisite portraits of famous artists. From Yan Pei Ming to Paul McCarty, from Lichtenstein to Opalka, without forgetting Pierre and Gilles and Gupta, Rancinan plunged head-first into the creative universe of each of these talented artists, and the result is a veritable communion, fusion, breathtaking and revealing “portrait-performance”, revealing part of each person’s soul, their force...their humanity.

First a photo-reporter, Gérard Rancinan tackles the world’s cruelties, continuously exploring them, striving to expose the underlying risks through his unique, vivid prism of visual creation that is constantly being re-born. Incensed by the international art world, celebrated and sought-after by the most famous, most prestigious art collectors, galleries and institutions around the globe, Rancinan has become the highest ranked French photographer in the world today.

Gérard Rancinan from March 25 to April 16 at Opera Gallery 356 rue Saint-Honoré 75001 Paris

The street art together for the first time Basquiat, 
 Graphito Speedy, The London Police, Mizer (Vitaly Rusakov), Seen & Co. ..

Opera Gallery exclusive exhibition entitled "Graffcity"

After the Museum of Modern Art, Opera Gallery Paris celebrates street art movement in an exhibition entitled "Graffcity" to be held from 4 to 25 February 2011. This exhibition brings together for the first time twenty international artists never before exhibited together, begins its journey to Paris to continue at the Opera Gallery London, then in other galleries of the Opera Gallery Group.

"Graffcity", highlights the changing nature of street art, which is originally a militant act or disinterested. It was in the 1970s in the underground New York, that this movement was born. The Adventure of graffiti expression par excellence of street art, continues in the street and then acquires a real reputation for moving slowly on the international scene in the early 1980s. One quickly realizes that his plan is the main communication. Whether it's a political message, of a claim, a revolt, a news item that disturbs, graffiti takes on a mirror of society, a reflection of public opinion.

"Graffcity" pays tribute to artists precursors of street art movement What was Jean - Michel Basquiat (United States), Keith Haring (United States), Seen (United States), Ron Français (United States), Blek le Rat (France) , Speedy Graphito (France), Daze (United States), Crash (United States), Dr. Evil Revolt (United States), Lady Pink (United States)

Graffcity also focuses on generating 'post - graffiti' that introduces techniques and different media (computerized creation, posters, stickers ...) represented in particular by: Mr. Brainwash (United States), Logan Hicks (United States) The London Police (UK), D * Face (UK), Buff Monster (United States), Kid Zoom (Australia) or Bigfoot (United States).

"Graffcity" finally proposes to explore other street art expressions through the presence of Iranian artists as Mohammad Khodashenas and Parviz Roozbeh or Russian as Mizer (Vitaly Rusakov) and Zmogk.