Artist: Valerio Adami

Valerio Adami unveils in Brussels a series of introspective and poignant paintings created over the past two years.

Valerio Adami, an iconic figure in the contemporary art scene, has left a lasting mark on his era through a distinctive approach to painting, where sharp graphic lines and vibrant colors combine to create a complex iconography. Trained at the Academy of Fine Arts in Milan, Adami quickly distinguished himself with a decidedly narrative style, rooted in the tradition of pop art while drawing from classical influences. His work presents a universe where bold black lines frame blocks of color, evoking a fragmented yet orderly reality. His paintings, often allegorical, explore the tensions between the individual and the world around them, while reflecting on themes of memory, history, and identity.

This exhibition offers an immersion into the artist’s world, where vignettes of daily life are intertwined with various literary and artistic tributes. The unexpected palette contrasts with the apparent melancholy of his characters, and the often somber themes of the works, addressing grave subjects such as human finitude. Informed by his readings, Adami’s paintings challenge the rules of perspective, multiplying planes and vanishing points. Through these complex compositions, Adami seeks to provoke a “philosophical inquiry into language.” “I am a painter of representation,” he explains, “each figure you see bears its own symbolism, like a discourse that never ends.”

At 89 years old, Valerio Adami remains as relevant as ever, especially in a contemporary art context that continues to question the meaning of figuration and the artist’s role in a constantly evolving society. The recurring themes of exile, separation, and transformation resonate deeply in our era of social and cultural upheavals. His recognizable aesthetic, combining formal rigor with symbolic power, has influenced many creators. His recent retrospective at the Palazzo Reale in Milan was a powerful reminder of Valerio Adami’s indispensable place in the modern and contemporary art landscape.

Born in 1935 in Bologna, Valerio Adami lives in Paris and Meina (Italy). He began exhibiting his work internationally in 1958, including at Documenta III in Germany (1964), the Jewish Museum in New York (1968), Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris (1970), Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris (1985), Tel Aviv Museum in Israel (1996), Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art in Iran (1999), Frissiras Museum in Greece (2004), Museum of Contemporary Art in Lisbon (2006), Venice Biennale in Italy (2011), Vienna Secession in Austria (2016) and the Royal Palace of Milan (2024). He took part in the major exhibition on Narrative Figuration at the Grand Palais in Paris in 2008 and exhibited at the Boca Raton Museum of Art in Florida in 2010. A major retrospective of his work was held in 2015 to mark his 80th birthday, travelling from Turin to Mantua then Perpignan. The Musée Jean Cocteau in Menton held a major retrospective of his work in 2018.

Valerio Adami's work also features in numerous museum collections in Europe and the United States, including at the Musée National d’Art Moderne, Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris; Fonds National d’Art Contemporain, Paris; Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, Paris; Fondation Maeght, Saint-Paul-de-Vence; Musée des Beaux-Arts, Brussels; Rotterdam Museum, Rotterdam; Amos Anderson Art Museum, Helsinki; Museo d’Arte Moderna, Rome; Frissiras Museum, Athens; Fondaccion Miro, Barcelona; Museu Coleção Berardo, Lisbon; Museum of Modern Art, Minneapolis; Museum of Modern Art, Pittsburg, and Museum of Art, Tel Aviv.