Jaime Gili (b. 1972)

Jaime Gili (b. 1972)
A47 (Montoya)
titled and dated 'A47 MONTOYA 2005-2006' (on the reverse)
acrylic on canvas laid on board
96⅛ x 48in. (244 x 121.8cm.)
Painted in 2005-2006

Provenance:
Riflemaker Gallery, London.
Acquired from the above by the present owner.

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Specialist Notes:

Influenced by the 1950s abstraction and kineticism that gained prominence in his native country, the large-scale paintings of radiating geometric forms by Jaime Gili have often been described as an explosion of a Carlos Cruz-Diez, the Venezuelan kinetic and op artist. The present work is from the artist’s enduring ‘A’ series, characterised by the intricate overlay of form and colour, which captivates the viewer as the dynamism of the composition seems to literally explode beyond the confines of the traditional picture plane.

Inaugurated in 2002 with a show at the Jerwood Space in London, the series forms the predominant body of work by the artist. Of its inception, Gili states ‘formally it is quite clear: The first paintings of the current series started with simple star shape, a graphic representation of what a star is. The beginnings were different overlapping star shapes in black and white. Then color got complex; the stars became pointier, and then they started to go beyond the limits of the frame, and now I seem to be concentrating on what’s going on in the middle. I don’t know where it’s leading me next, but it’s been going on for 8 years now’ (J. Gili, quoted in O. Kielmayer, ‘Constructivist Jungle / Interview with Jaime Gili’, in ArtPulse).

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