MILTON ROSA-ORTIZ: According to Milton    Nov 1 - Nov 28, 2008

As a satellite exhibition to Prospect.1, the largest contemporary art biennial in the history of the United States, Gallery Bienvenu presents a visually luscious, emotionally affecting exhibition by New York-based artist Milton Rosa-Ortiz. With artwork that seduces the eye via luxurious materials, even as it harbors deeply layered conceptual underpinnings, Rosa-Ortiz has been hailed by The New York Times' Holland Cotter as "a poetic artist with an unsentimental eye." His new sculptures draw inspiration from the heroism and resilience of the citizens of post-Katrina New Orleans. Referring to the works, he remarks: "I was struck by the incredible energy and stamina that the people of New Orleans have shown as they've carried on with their lives."

Inspired by nature, the artist's installations marry his longtime love of glamorous materials-black velvet, glittery stickpins, light boxes, and Swarovsky crystal dangling from the ceiling by clear wires-with a poignant emotional sensitivity that invites multifaceted social and political interpretation. His current body of work, referencing Louisiana maps and incorporating site-specific plaster castings, aims to transform grim memories of Katrina into images of hope. "What I want to do," he says, "is erase the sad or ugly images and replace them with beautiful ones."

Born in Puerto Rico, Rosa-Ortiz practiced architecture in the United States and Mexico before he fell in love with sculpture. His rhythmic spatial etudes, which he has referred to as "3-D pointillism" and "mobiles on L.S.D.," reflect his interest in the relationship between solidity and negative space. In the traditions of Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí and contemporary English artist Cornelia Parker, his works are subtly kinetic, meditative, and mesmerizing in their interaction with light. The suspended pieces "defy reason... they're infused with life; they move like schools of fish, and if there's a gust, you can hear them clink." Uniting visceral, intellectual, and spiritual qualities, the works speak to the uniquely human capacity to turn adversity into beauty and transcendence.