LUIS OLASO: Albero

For Luis Olaso’s oil and acrylic works the expressive power springing from within forms is the starting point. The expressionism manifesting feelings is mingled with symbolism and the meaning of lines, forms and colours is accentuated via the visual tropes the artist brings to the fore.

Olaso is more interested in the mental impressions that are awoken through the tension between the colours, texture and multi-dimensional surface than he is in narrative. The extrovert energy is captivating, and is particularly evident on the canvas through the structure and tones. His spontaneous painting style underpins a creative mode of expression in which he seeks a deeper meaning through the materials. This subjective approach draws on Olaso’s own feelings, state of mind and views.

The canvases present clear, vibrant surfaces of colour, with shapes superimposed on them. The self-observation and the personal approach reflected in the works make them like portraits of Olaso himself; with the distinct human figures replaced by flowers, plants or objects. Olaso is fascinated by visual tension, the drama generated by the contrasts, and the disruption of order. He aims to render the human body through allegories, bringing the spectator reminders of the expressionists such as Edvard Munch, Hilma af Klint and Wassily Kandinsky. The depiction of internal feelings in colours, forms, symbols and movements are energetic pieces with spontaneous compositions. Chromaticity emphasizes the impulsive inner core of the works, the power of the artist’s improvisation.

Olaso has graduated from Faculty of Arts at the University of the Basque Country, Spain. He has exhibited his works in several international galleries, and e.g. Zabaleta Museum, Jaen, Museo Casa Ibañez of Melilla, Museu d’Art de Pego, Alicante and Pablo Picasso Museum, Málaga. His works are in the collections of Yusaku Maezawa’s Contemporary Art Foundation, Tokyo, Luis de Morales Museum and Diego del Alcázar’s Private Collection, among others.