Bullet Shell Art is Unstoppable: Works of Artist Federico Uribe shown by Adelson Galleries

Leopard artist Federico Uribe courtesy Adelson Galleries, New York, Boston color pencil art, avant-garde, art, fine art, artist, gallery, art gallery, exhibit, Impressionism, Realism, Modernism

 

Two weeks ago, attending the Texas Contemporary Art Fair, held at the George R Brown Convention Center in Houston, TX, we discovered that the most intricate, breathtaking, avant-garde fine art can be made from bullet shells, color pencils, pencil erasers and plastic fasteners. That is true, if the fine artist is Federico Uribe.  Artist Uribe, whose rare and exceptional gift is to mold inanimate objects into bright and vibrant images, is represented by the world renowned Adelson Galleries (New York and Boston), which has a history of 40 years of handling some of the finest American paintings.  We had the pleasure of a magnificent guided tour through the remarkable works of artist Uribe, which was provided by the extremely knowledgeable and gracious Ms. Elizabeth Oustinoff and Mr. Alan Adelson, Director and Assistant Director of the Adelson Galleries. 

Federico Uribe grew up in Bogota, Colombia, and currently lives in Miami, FL.  As he describes, his artwork “resists classification.”  He defines it as “rooted in the craft of sculpture and paint, it rises from intertwining everyday objects in all and surprising ways, but still with a formal reference to the history and tradition of classical art.”  Artist Uribe studied art at the University of Los Andes in Bogota.  In 1988, he moved to New York, and under the tutelage of Luis Camnitzer, he studied for a masters in fine arts degree.     After initially painting on canvas, he realized that his calling was to work with inanimate objects, transforming them into the most exceptionally expressive three dimensional art one can imagine.  Artist Uribe’s impeccable attention to detail leaves the viewer speechless and breathless, as they gaze into the face and eyes of “Leopard,” a 44x60x30 inch work of art made from bullet shells, and which we saw at Texas Contemporary Art Show.  Even though over two weeks have elapsed since viewing this magnificent work at the Texas Contemporary, the transformational impact which this masterpiece has had upon the subconscious portion of the mind is unmistakable, and does not fade with time.  When staring into the eyes of “Leopard,” one does not see only the bullet shells, one does not see only a leopard, but one sees and feels the much greater omnipresence of a powerful, frozen yet immortalized spirit of the animal kingdom, powerful, potent, peaceful and calm simultaneously.

 

 

Artist Federico Uribe has created many other styles of artwork, but the ones which we focused on at the event in Houston were the bullet shell art, and the colored pencil art, both of which were mesmerizing to the eyes and mind.  Other objects which, in the hands of virtuoso artist Uribe, undergo this metamorphosis from an inanimate to a greater than life status, include shoelaces and pins, and electric cables.  Mr. Federico Uribe’s Exhibition “At Peace” is currently on exhibit at Adelson Galleries in Boston, October 16-December 20, 2015 ( http://adelsongalleriesboston.com/index.html ) . 

Artist Federico Uribe is represented by Adelson Galleries.  He has exhibited work in Miami, New York, Padova Italy, London, Monaco, Dubai, Lexington KY, Dominican Republic, Washington DC, Palm Beach, Valencia Spain, Cayman Islands, Chicago, Berkeley, Guadalajara Mexico, and Koln Germany.

Adelson Galleries has a rich and distinct history, known as being one of the finest art galleries in the world.  With expertise in the fields of American Impressionism, Realism and Modernism, and originally founded 40 years ago in Boston, the gallery is now located in Manhattan, New York.  An additional gallery was opened in Boston in 2012.  According to Adelson Galleries (http://www.adelsongalleries.com/ ), the gallery frequently handles works by leading 19^th and 20^th century American artists such as George Bellows, Frank Benson, Mary Cassatt, William Merritt Chase, Thomas Wilmer Dewing,  Thomas Eakins, Marsden Hartley, Childe Hassam, Robert Henri, Winslow Homer, Edward Hopper, Eastman Johnson, John Marin, Georgia O’Keefe, Maurice Prendergast, John Singer Sargent, Edmund Tarbell, Andrew and Jamie Wyeth, and other select  contemporary artists.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Keywords: bullet shell art, avant-garde, art, fine art, artist, gallery, art gallery, exhibit, Impressionism, Realism, Modernism