For the opening show at the new space at No. 21 Cork Street, The Mayor Gallery is presenting an exhibition of work by the Kinetic Op artist Luis Tomasello with work spanning six decades of his career.
Born in Argentina in 1915, Tomasello has lived and worked in Paris since 1957 when he began working in abstraction. He studied painting and later Architecture at Buenos Aires School of Fine Art before moving to Europe. Heavily influenced by Mondrian, Tomasello uses three-dimensional geometric formations to create reflections of light and colour, infusing the work with a kinetic energy experienced by the viewer.
Luis Tomasello is particularly known for his avant-garde series Atmosphères Chromoplastiques, in which he reflects colour on to the white surface using the shadows of three-dimensional geometric forms. The opposite of which being the Lumière Noire ‘Black Lights’ series, where the light is consumed rather than reflected.
A leading figure in the Kinetic and Op-Art movement, with such contempories as François Morellet, Jesús Rafael Soto and Victor Vasarely, Tomasello was first represented by Galerie Denise René in Paris and showed at numerous national and international exhibitions of Op-Art, including the landmark show ‘La Lumière et le Mouvement’ in 1967, and a 2004 Retrospective at MACLA, La Plata.
To coincide with the exhibition a selection of jewellery will also be presented by the Spanish designer Chus Burés. Working from designs inspired by Tomasello, Burés creates unique stunning wearbale pieces.
The illustrated exhibition catalogue available from 5th February presents a fascinating edited conversation between Luis Tomasello and Hans Ulrich Obrist for The Interview Project (Obrist’s compilation of artist interviews), getting a personal insight into the evolution of Zero Art and Tomasello’s personal journey.