Heather Gaudio Fine Art is pleased to announce Valeria Nascimento: BLOOM, the Brazilian artist’s first solo exhibition at the gallery. The show will open with a public reception on Friday, May 3rd, 5-7pm and will run through June 22nd.

Nature is the main source of inspiration for Nascimento, its beauty, essence and ephemerality rendered in delicate porcelain sculpture. The Brazilian artist’s architectural background informs the structure of her designs in interior spaces, making them small, intimate compositions or oversized site-specific installations. Painstakingly rolling the porcelain ceramic to make it paper-thin, Nascimento cuts and sculpts her shapes before they are fired at high temperatures. Delicate rings, blossoms, petals, cups and other botanical elements emerge from the kilns, their colors transformed into soft, muted tones of creams, whites, blues, greys and blacks.

The small sculptures are arranged in clusters and systems to create large blooms and other flora encased in Perspex or mounted directly onto the wall. These works will be featured alongside two large-scale installations for which she is known. The first, an explosion of hibiscus blossoms in white and grey hues will grace an entire gallery wall measuring over 100 feet. Rainforest, a more immersive hanging mobile installation, will transform the gallery space to an environment with suspended petals, flowers, seeds, branches and other natural forms. Nascimento takes the viewer on a meditative journey through botanical scenery, providing an ethereal experience with the weightlessness of the material.

Heather Gaudio Fine Art specializes in emerging and established artists, offering painting, works on paper, photography and sculpture. The gallery provides a full-range of art advisory services, from forming and maintaining a collection, to securing secondary market material, to assisting with framing and installation. The focus is on each individual client, selecting art that best serves his or her vision, space, and resources. The six exhibitions offered every year are designed to present important talent and provide artwork appealing to a broad range of interests. Gallery hours are Tuesday through Saturday; 10:30am to 5:30pm; and by appointment.