Viewing Room

Forms of Art

New Perspectives on Contemporary Art
A work of art is composed of multiple forms, from the figuration of a human silhouette or a still life to the dynamic shapes of Abstraction. From Pygmalion to Contemporary Art, it is the artist’s role to shape Art, give it smoothness, distort it: give it life. To celebrate the vibrant Miami art scene and echo fairs and events meant to take place this week, Opera Gallery has decided to take you on an artistic journey through all shapes and forms.
This curated selection opens on the unique works of Mel Bochner. With his collages, Bochner offers a high-concept encapsulation of language and physical space by adding shapes and dimension to the words he depicts.
“We live in a world that is oversaturated with empty language […]. If there is no escaping this linguistic tsunami, the ‘Blah, Blah, Blah’ paintings subvert it from below.”
- Mel Bochner
Both Bochner and Korean artist Cho Sung-Hee create complex relationship between color and texture. Cho anchors the shapes of her artworks into tradition and propels them to the present by her innovative use of hanji, Korean traditional paper.

Cho Sung-Hee

Black with Red
2019
Korean mulberry tree paper (hanji) and oil on canvas
162,2 x 130,3 cm - 63.9 x 51.3 in

Cho Sung-Hee

White Blossom (B)
2018
Korean mulberry tree paper (hanji) and oil on canvas
162 x 130 cm - 63.8 x 51.2 in

Cho Sung-Hee

Red Blossoms B
2019
Collage, Korean mulberry tree paper (hanji) and oil on canvas
145,5 x 112,1 cm - 57.3 x 44.1 in

Fernando Botero

Nature morte à l’ananas
1988
Oil on canvas
146,1 x 198,1 cm - 57.5 x 78 in

Fernando Botero

Oiseau
Circa
2004
Marble
55 x 17 x 14 cm - 21.7 x 6.7 x 5.5 in

“In art, as long as you have ideas and think, you are bound to deform nature. Art is deformation.”
- Fernando Botero
Modern painter Fernando Botero, graciously paints and sculpts nature in his unique perspective on shapes and colors, warping reality into a work of art. Contemporary artist Julian Opie also plays with human shapes, synthesizing them to create familiar faces to all, calling the viewer to a dance session or a romantic night with Antonia…

Julian Opie

Antonia 1
2011
Silkscreen on painted wooden board
105 x 65,4 cm - 41.3 x 25.7 in

Julian Opie

Leanne and Ed, lift
2008
Vinyl serigraphy (unique) on canvas laid on wooden panel
269,7 x 231,5 x 3,5 cm - 106.2 x 91.1 x 1.4 in

“When I start creating an object, the composition needs to be clear, and so does the three-dimensionality, which is not only shaped by volume, but also by colors and shades.”
- Alfred Haberpointner
Austrian sculptor Alfred Haberpointner masters the art of optical illusions and the creation of depth with his colorful compositions of stained spruce woods.

Alfred Haberpointner

W-ZZIM
2020
Spruce wood, stain
200 x 150 cm - 78.7 x 59.1 in

Alfred Haberpointner

W-IDAM
2020
Spruce wood, stain
200 x 150 cm - 78.7 x 59.1 in

Manolo Valdés

Helechos
2011
Bronze
112 x 152 x 50 cm - 44.1 x 59.8 x 19.7 in

Manolo Valdés

Portrait I
2018
Mixed media on burlap
165 x 140 cm - 65 x 55.1 in

This overview of the manipulation of forms in art could not be complete without Manolo Valdés. His tranquil portrait of women, their stylized, gracious traits capture the absolute essence of form. On his mixed media artworks, they stand out against raw lines and materials; through his sculptural works, they offer the viewer slender curves and are paired with swirls of natural yet geometrical lines: ferns, or butterflies.

Manolo Valdés

Matisse como pretexto azul y rojo
2020
Mixed media
130 x 100 cm - 51.2 x 39.4 in

Manolo Valdés

Menina in Blue
2013
Painted wood
85 x 60 x 36 cm - 33.5 x 23.6 x 14.2 in

Manolo Valdés

Cabeza con alambre y mariposas
2020
Wood, steel and resin
114,3 x 66 x 61 cm - 45 x 26 x 24 in

Last but not least, French painter Pierre Soulages materializes lights bringing forms onto a structured black and blue canvas; creating a captivating, unreal and surprisingly luminous painting.

Pierre Soulages

Peinture 222 x 85 cm, 27 mai 1988
1988
Oil on canvas
222 x 85 cm - 87.4 x 33.5 in

“My pictures are poetic objects capable of receiving what each person is ready to invest there according to the ensemble of forms and colors that is proposed to him.”
- Pierre Soulages