Olga de Amaral at Foundation Cartier pour l'art contemporain
Olga de Amaral at Foundation Cartier pour l'art contemporain
Fondation Cartier pour l'art contemporain presents the first major retrospective in Europe of Olga de Amaral, a key figure of the Colombian art scene and of Fiber Art. The exhibition brings together works made between the 1960s and now, many of which have never been shown before outside of Colombia. Beyond the vibrant goldleaf pieces for which the artist is renowned, the exhibition reveals her earliest explorations and experimentations with textile, as well as her monumental works.
In this exhibition, the Fondation Cartier foregrounds the boldness of textile art, long marginalized due to the perception of it as a decorative art essentially practiced by women. Resolutely entwined with the dynamics of post World War II abstract art, Amaral’s ambitious production deviates from the conventional framework of traditional tapestry. The retrospective notably showcases her vital contribution to the artistic avant-garde of the 1960s, 70s and 80s. This exhibition offers a fresh and exhaustive perspective on her career and unveils the full complexity of her artistic practice. Without adopting a strictly chronological order, it shines a light on the different periods that have characterized her artistic career: from her formal explorations, her use of the grid and color, to her experimentationation with materiality and scale.