Surreallovers – collage and digital art exhibition
Retroavangarda Gallery Jerozolimskie Business Park
6th Dec 2022 – 28th Feb 2023
Curator of the exhibition: PhD. Anna Kłos
The exhibition showcases several dozen artworks by six artists from six different parts of the world. The common trait of all the authors is love for collage and for surrealism to which they allude in various ways. Despite this common key factor the artists keep their own, distinctive styles. In the presented series we can see the influences of cultures and traditions from the authors’ respective countries.
Let’s take a closer look at the artworks showcased on the exhibition:
First we have the solar collages by Allen Ladd, a peruvian artist. The square graphics with strong dominant are inspired by astronomy and traditional peruvian art. Sara Vattano from Sicily presents four magical digital collages. The compositions consist of numerous, carefully selected elements in an unreal scale – as if from inside a dream. There is antique architecture, retro photography, ancient gods’ atributes and symbols of time and space.
The exposition at Retroavangarda Gallery holds also meticulous projects of Koji Nagai – collage master from Japan. In these fascinating projects filled with details we can find influences of avant- garde, contemporary Japanese culture and 1950s Japanese poster art. The artist willingly makes use of botanical motifs and snippets of 19th century engravings. Despite many sources of inspiration, Koji Nagai’s series are coherent and have a clearly defined, personal style.
Next we should focus on the digital collages of Tan Tolga Demirci, artist from Turkey, a film school graduate. His pieces refer directly to the art of film, which is his main passion. They are also a direct reference to the art of Salvador Dali – the most famous surrealist. Surreal spirit can also be noticed in the collages of Leo Litha from France. Their nostalgic feel reminds us of the constant, inevitable flow of time.
The next 12 artworks, done by Mexican artist Guillermo Flores, are of a bit different character. His projects woo the viewer with large number of elements and the ingenuity of their combination. The artist referes to the relation of human with the natural environment. In his digital collages we can find exotic flowers and wild animals. There are also many references to art and culture of Mexico, where the artist comes from.
Artists participating in the exhibition:
Allen Ladd / Peru
Sara Vattano / Sicily, Italy
Koji Nagai / Japan
Tan Tolga Demirci / Turkey
Leo Litha / France
Guillermo Flores / Mexico
Retroavangarda Gallery at Jerozolimskie Business Park
Aleje Jerozolimskie 146D, 02-305 Warsaw
Gallery opening times: Tuesday – Friday 11 AM – 7 PM
retroavangarda.com@gmail.com
text by Anna Kłos, translation by Karolina Kłos
photo Tomasz Kłos