Orsina Sforza Biography

Sforza's small oil paintings stress everyday moments, singling out insignificant details and analysing their unique structure, their ways of reacting to light and reveal colour, transforming a simple thing into a complex and versatile matter. The paintings are luminous and figurative, but not immediately decipherable; they persevere in their elusiveness of mysterious objects, perfect arabesques one step removed. The different compositions are all characterised by the study of the image either fixed or in movement, but the stylistic elements are those of the cinema and photography: enlarged close-ups, angles and sizes with the aesthetic of a single frame, some use of over—and under—exposure, allow Sforza to cut her subject into shape, place them into brilliant, often crowded compositions. Her painting excludes the human figure and instead prefers the happy collaboration between the drapes of a piece of cloth and the bark of a branch; the upward flight of a belt from a drawer or within the folds of a sheet, or next to other similar objects which appear magnified on the canvas. Sforza approaches painting as a modern medium, purely using photography as lens to bring intofocus the point of departure, to isolate her meticulous compositions before starting to paint. She possesses a rare sense for colour with which she recalls, distinguishes; she plays with the pro and contra with an innate grace which allows her to arrive at the monumental nature of great painting even in a small format, effortlessly. When exhibited as part of a group, Sforza's works take on a new dimension, each pattern complementing and challenging the next. Sforza describes her oil paintings as her 'personal mind maze', helping her to investigate perception and its possibilities.

Her most recent body of work is a collection of small oil paintings which explore the theme of geometry, using bold colours and metallic accents. Each small canvas displays a different intricate and sharp geometric design. When exhibited as part of a group, the works take on a new dimension, each pattern complementing and challenging the next. Sforza describes her oil paintings as her 'personal mind maze', helping her to investigate perception and its possibilities.

Sforza's design projects include a stage design for the opera The Death of Anton Weber at the Florence National Theatre, Italy, 1996 and a stage and costume design for the operina Risvegliin 2015 by Patrizia Cavalli at Caio Massimo Theatre, Spoleto Festival, Spoleto. Sforza attended 1979-80San Francisco Art Institute from 1979-80, San Francisco, USA, followed by the Byam Shaw School ofArt and Design, 1980-83, London.

Courtesy Tristan Hoare Gallery, London.