Manolo Valdés

Opera Gallery Singapore is pleased to present ‘Manolo Valdés’, a major solo exhibition celebrating the acclaimed Spanish artist in conjunction with Singapore Art Week 2026. On view from 23 January to 8 February 2026, the exhibition showcases paintings, sculptures and mixed-media works created between 2007 and 2025. Featuring works from his celebrated Cabezas and Reina Mariana series, among others, the show offers a compelling overview of Valdés as one of today’s most visionary artists—reimagining modern art through a sustained dialogue with art history. This marks Valdés’ first solo exhibition in Singapore in nearly ten years.

The exhibition traces how his recurring motifs evolve across time and media, showcasing his dialogue between tradition and innovation. Iconic Infanta Margarita sculptures—crafted from painted wood to aluminum—stand alongside textural portraits in burlap and oil on canvas, exemplifying Valdés’ distinctive exploration of form and material. Sculptural busts in Murano glass and bronze, such as Cabeza con formas geométricas (2023), reveal refined symmetry, while textural mixed-media portraits like Doble cara en rosa (2023) depict two ambiguous figures layered with contrasting hues and textures.

As 2025 marked the 60th anniversary of the founding of Equipo Crónica, the influential Spanish collective Valdés co-founded, this exhibition also offers a moment to reflect on the group’s enduring impact on modern art, highlighting how Valdés’s commitment to experimentation and collaboration has reverberated across generations.

Presented during this season of artistic celebration—a reflection of the city’s vibrant, ever-evolving cultural landscape—Manolo Valdés finds resonance in Singapore’s own dialogue between heritage and modernity. Within this context, Valdés’s works speak across cultures and histories, embodying a universal language of form and transformation. They remind us that art, is a bridge between worlds: between what has been, and what continues to unfold.