Even those who are not followers of extraordinary South American artist Olga de Amaral (born 1932) are likely to be familiar with her mystical golden landscapes. These reference the gold of Catholic altars in Colombia and pre-Columbian goldworking and its spiritual connotations. Her use of gold was also influenced by the Japanese technique kintsugi, which consists of repairing objects by highlighting their cracks and areas of breakage using gold powder. From the 1980s, gold leaf became one of her preferred materials — applied directly to cotton or to surfaces stiffened with gesso.
In fact, de Amaral’s oeuvre encompasses so much more — weavings and fiber sculptures monumental in size, vibrant in color, varied in technique — that push the boundaries of textile art. Last year, when we learned about the comprehensive exhibition of her work planned at the Cartier Foundation in Paris, we formulated a plan to visit. We made it this week — just before it ends on March 16, 2025. The exhibition contains a remarkable 80 works, dating from the 1960s to 2018, some of which have never been seen outside of Colombia. Our recommendation: if you can drive or fly or travel by train to see Olga de Amaral before it ends, you should do so.
Following a degree in architecture, de Amaral was a student at the Cranbrook Academy of Art in Michigan in the 1950s and then resettled in Colombia, opening a studio in 1955. There she she combined the techniques she had studied with her knowledge of her country’s traditional textiles, in a spontaneous, expressive style inspired by the history and landscapes of her native soil: the high plateaus of the Andes, valleys and vast tropical plains. In the 60s, the artist introduced horsehair into her works. This thick, stiff fiber enabled her to increase the scale of her early works, becoming monumental, like Muro en Rojas (Wall in Red).
In the 70s, de Amaral explored new materials and techniques — linen, wool, horsehair, even plastic, were woven, braided, sometimes coiled or knotted. Encaldo en laca azul (Whitewashed in Lime and Blue Lacquer) is made up of purple and orange rectangular strips sewn in a dense, irregular pattern, The tips are painted in vivid turquoise reminiscent of Pre-Columbian feather art.
In 2013, de Amaral began a new series titled Brumas, consisting of diaphanous three-dimensional textiles that move slightly and show simple geometric patterns painted directly on the cotton threads. They evoke a cloud, a misty rain of pure color that the artist invites us to walk through.
The exhibition’s locale contributes enormously to the viewer experience. In designing the exhibition space, the French-Lebanese architect Lina Ghotmeh immersed herself in de Amaral’s sources of inspiration: on the ground floor of Jean Nouvel’s building, surrounded by the glass and gardens, Ghotmeh created a landscape of slate stones connecting the interior, exterior, and the works, as though they were set in a stony, rugged landscape. On the below-ground level, she created a spiral (a motif found in some of de Amaral’s works), to guide visitors through an enveloping space in which the artist’s explorations gradually emerge. She calls her approach, “archeology of the future.” She wants to immerse visitors in “a timeless moment, rich in emotions and sensations.” The artist, architect, and the Foundation have ably succeeded.
