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Oto Rimele, The Light of Shadow 
Círculo de Bellas Artes de Madrid (CBA)
5  February–30 March 2014 
Opening: Wednesday, 5 February at 20:00

Oto Rimele is one of the leading names of Slovenian contemporary fine arts. In the recent decades he has developed an entirely unique principle of expression that is minimalist, yet it carries complex meanings. His explorations are primarily focused on the laws of colour reflections, and he excels in attractive spatial arrangements for which he has won numerous prestigious awards in Slovenia.

The exhibition jointly prepared by Círculo de Bellas Artes de Madrid (CBA) and UGM | Maribor Art Gallery presents the major works of the past fifteen years which have been combined by the author into a new spatial entity.

Oto Rimele’s individual works always consist of two parts: the first is a material one – a construction carrying the image, while the second part is non-material and is created as its shadow, glow and a coloured reflection. The core of the artist’s exploration, which is supported by precise theory, is a relationship between these so very different starting points. In this research the author uses different forms, types of material and positioning of the art object as well as the possibilities offered by reflections. The spatial installation designed by Oto Rimele especially for the Juane Mordó exhibition space »speaks« of the role of light and shadows. There are many levels of comprehension, ranging from reflection on the essence of a painterly medium and its potential development in the present time to the fundamental ontological issues regarding the creation of the world which is divided into the light and the shadow. Apart from this symbolically powerful premise it is important to observe that the viewer is directly invited by Oto Rimele to primarily experience his works. As is the case with all his installations, the concept of The Light of Shadow exhibition is completely minimalist. In the ambience where at the first glance there is nothing apart from sheer emptiness, whiteness, transparency and reddish reflections, the hidden is gradually revealed. Contrary to our expectations we find for instance that a shadow can be more powerful than its material medium. And this is just the beginning. Isn’t a shadow actually light? What is its origin? Why does it carry such strong red traces? A new magical world that will fascinate the viewer with the installation concept is one of the rare contemporary works of art that require us to pause and reflect. In the process of surprise the audience willing to surrender to curiosity and then to contemplation will be rewarded with a rich poetic experience and a new individual revelation.

Oto Rimele (1962) is a Slovenian painter who lives and works in Maribor, Slovenia. He is a full professor of painting and drawing at the University of Maribor. He also works in graphic and stage design. He has received a number of awards, the most prominent being those awarded for original spatial installations (one of them was the project located in the former monastery church in Kostanjevica na Krki (2003), and the highest professional recognition in culture in Slovenia, the Prešeren Fund award, 2004. He has held over 45 independent exhibitions and has participated in over a hundred group exhibitions. He was also a member and a co-founder of the rock group Lačni Franz and a member of Laibach.

An excellent monograph Spirituality of Material Absence by Jure Mikuž was published on the work of Oto Rimele in 2012. 

YOU ARE KINDLY INVITED!
More about the artist and the project:
http://www.otorimele.com/en/
http://www.ugm.si
The project has been financially supported by: