NEW YORK – Donopoulos International Fine Arts inaugurates their new New York Gallery on November 14 with Costas Picadas: Universe / Metaverse. The exhibition is curated by Thalia Vrachopoulos. There will be an opening reception at the gallery on November 15 from 6-8 pm.
Costas Picadas, in his series Universe / Metaverse, consisting approximately of ten multi-media works, examines both the micro and macro-worlds. Four large paintings in muted tones of green, turquoise and pink reference multiplying cell-life forms are exhibited with several colorful prints of human organs such as a heart populated by botanical growth. Moreover, Picadas’ videos, whose content portrays augmenting organic forms, unites the whole assembly.
Edition 1/7, 40 X 60 inches.
The exhibition’s title addresses Picadas’ subject matter both in its microcosmic detail showing cellular life but also in its macrocosmic sense. The paintings contain tiny rounded forms that appear to contract and when expanding begetting similar tiny particles like galaxies producing new stars. The backgrounds of the Universe / Metaverse painting triptych are painted in such a way that the overlain forms are made to appear as if they float. Of further interest is the environment into which Picadas has placed these organic forms that contains horizontal rectilinear elements. Placed in this context, these cellular rounded shapes create a beautifully engaging juxtaposition of visual contrasts. Moreover, the painting surface is not smooth but rather built up in layers that sometimes drip creating further contrast with the smooth inner areas of the overlaid figures.
Picadas’ oeuvre includes photo-based prints depicting human anatomical parts such as a heart, or skeleton part sprouting horticultural elements. This series includes augmented reality images resulting in an immersive-metaverse experience produced by using 3D photo-based models. The viewer accesses the image through a QR code that they read with their telephone’s camera. The images appear in 3D reality that incorporates the space surrounding them. Finally, Picadas’ videos are about growth and multiplication of cells superimposed one upon the other in delicately webbed images that combine human and plant anatomy.
ABOUT COSTAS PICADAS:
Costas Picadas was born in loannina, Greece in 1966. He studied art at the Ecole Des Beaux-Arts and art history at the Louvre School in Paris. Picadas’ work has been exhibited at The Queens Museum, New York, Tenri Cultural Institute, New York, Denise Bibro Gallery, New York, The Blender Gallery, Athens Greece, Gallery Gransart, Paris, France, Mykonos Biennale, Mykonos, Greece, The Young Art Fair, Basel, Switzerland, Gallery J&J Donguy Paris, France, Some Young New Yorkers IIl at PS1, New York, Kappatos Gallery, Athens, Greece, Gallery de Buci Paris, France, Gallery Anatole, Chartres, France, Gallery de Nest Paris, France, Salon de Montrouge, Paris, France, WG, Amsterdam, Holland, and the Festival of Avignon, France. Picadas has lived and worked in New York since 1994.
ABOUT DONOPOULOS INTERNATIONAL FINE ARTS:
Donopoulos IFA was founded in Greece in 2007 by Makis Donopoulos. The gallery’s expansion into the New York market heralds an exciting chapter in the gallery’s journey, bringing its rich history of promoting contemporary artistic experimentation to a new and diverse audience. The gallery’s mission is to promote a diverse range of artistic styles and techniques that epitomize contemporary artistic experimentation. Donopoulos IFA Gallery has played a pivotal role in shaping the art landscape, nurturing the talent of established and emerging artists alike. Artists represented by the gallery include: Aljoscha, Gehard Demetz, Wolf Hamm, George Lappas, Adriana Molder, Kai Richter and Costas Picadas. Their work stands as a testament to the gallery’s dedication to showcasing diversity and fostering creativity.
Edition 1/7, after 3D sculpture, 40 X 60 inches.
