LISTEN NOW | LINDA MARTINELLO & RENÉE VAN DER AVOIRD IN CONVERSATION
Nicholas Metivier Gallery is delighted to announce Time and Terrain: Along the Côte d'Azur, an exhibition of new works by Linda Martinello. The exhibition will open on February 3rd and run until February 24th. This is Martinello’s third solo exhibition at the gallery. There will be a talk with Renée van der Avoird, the Associate Curator of Canadian Art at the Art Gallery of Ontario, and the artist on February 3rd at 1PM. RSVP here.
Time and Terrain: Along the Côte d'Azur features paintings and studies conceptualised during Linda Martinello’s 2022 residency with La Napoule Art Foundation. Martinello worked in a studio situated within the Château de La Napoule, nestled along the Mediterranean coast in the South of France. The studio opened directly onto the castle’s courtyard, providing Martinello unhindered views of the mountains and the Bay of Cannes.
Martinello views her time in the South of France as a transformative experience. She reflects, “my encounters with nature, ranging from the rhythmic waves against cliffside to the dappled sunlight in hillside forests, served as continual inspiration for my site documentation and research.” Martinello went for daily morning hikes along the coastline and into hillside trails. This was the time of day when the natural colours of the landscape were most intense. The changing light and delicate balance between the rocks, sun and sea, layered the landscape with optical movement and patterns. She was especially captivated by the juxtaposition between the red rocky Alpes-Maritimes mountains and the azure and turquoise water, where rock and sea reinforce visually the geographical duality of the region.
Martinello describes the process of bringing these sensory experiences into the studio as a ritual of translation, through which the play of light, the vibrant colours, and the textural nuances observed during her walks found expression in the paintings.
“Each brushstroke became a deliberate attempt to capture the essence of those moments, creating a visual language that resonated with the energy of the natural world.” - Linda Martinello
