Dreams and Reflections: Now on View at Latin American Masters (November 12-December 17)

Julio Valdez's new exhibition, Dreams and Reflections, takes its title from Carl Jung's memoir Memories, Dreams, Reflections. Valdez's use of "reflection" has multiple meanings. These works explore observable phenomena, such as the reflection of light on water, while simultaneously reflecting an inner world informed by the artist's personal and collective history.

Valdez's new paintings were made over the past three years. They are inspired by Valdez's varied travels, including a visit to the Celestún Biosphere Reserve in Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula. Among the exhibition's highlights is Celestún II, depicting a diver submerged beside the anchor line of an unseen boat. The anchor line disappears into the oceans depths, far below the diver's refracted image. The painting's tensions resonate in the disappearing anchor line, the instability of the diver's image and a sense of isolation and vulnerability reinforced by the unseen boat.

Julio Valdez is a past recipient of the Artist in Resident Fellowship from the Studio Museum of Harlem, New York. In 2003 he received the New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowship and held a solo exhibition at the Organization of American States Museum, Washington, D.C. In 2007, Valdez received a National Academy of Arts Fellowship. His work is included in many public collections, including: El Museo del Barrio, New York; Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), Los Angeles; The Museum of Latin American Art (MOLA), Long Beach; and the Santa Barbara Museum of Art; Santa Barbara. His work is also included in the permanent collection of the US State Department /Art in Embassies program. Valdez describes his work:

My paintings explore this oceanic landscape that is both illusory and

dreamlike. I have been examining images of water beyond its physical

characteristics, as a metaphor for consciousness and the creative process.

My recent work reflects my interest in creating a spatial uncertainty, a sense of time not yet defined.

For more information on this exhibition, please contact the gallery at (310) 829-4455, or visit the website at LatinAmericanMasters.com.

Click here to view the catalogue.