Julian Opie. New Works

Julian Opie is regarded as one of the most important contemporary artists in the world. His works are immediately recognisable for their distinct formal language and for the simplicity of representation of portraits, figures, and landscapes, resulting from digital manipulation. In his works, the stylised treatment of the subjects portrayed—painted in solid colours, with thick black outlines for their features—is inspired by art, design, and language, as well as Japanese prints, seventeenth- and eighteenth-century portraits, nineteenth-century silhouettes, Roman busts, and Ancient Egyptian art. Opie is able to bring all these established artistic genres into the twenty-first century.
This is his first solo exhibition in Lisbon. The artist sought to extend the exhibition space in all possible directions, including as part of his project the square in front of the Jerónimos Monastery, the internal courtyards and gardens of the CCB, and the galleries devoted to contemporary art within the Museum. Most of the works on display were produced specifically for this exhibition and gallery, making use not just of the walls, which stand eight metres tall, but also, going even higher, the roof. People are the central theme of the exhibition, portrayed in various ways and with various materials; sometimes static, sometimes moving; sometimes painted, sometimes sculpted. There is also space for some buildings and animals, to expand on the theme and develop the subject matter. In the second room, different computer animations use intermittent LED to show stylised pigeons that evoke hieroglyphics, jumping in all directions and hopping from one canvas to another. For the final room, the artist produced a gigantic installation that, inspired by the beautiful Belém Tower, sends us back to Manueline architecture.

Rita Lougares
Artistic director

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