SENS Gallery is pleased to announce Summer Adventures, a duo exhibition of American artists Peter and Ogden Opheim in Hong Kong. The fanciful, protuberant characters of Peter’s paintings accompany the boxhead sculptures of Ogden, joining together in an exhibition that offers a glimpse into two generations reflecting on human nature through love, compassion, and togetherness.

Summer Adventures is an exhibition that centers on bringing love and unity into the world through different interpretations. Consisting of bulbous and colorful entropies, the entities of Peter’s paintings exist in an imaginary world that deals with reality. Each figure on the canvas has a unique physicality, intertwining different features and personalities. Behind their eyes, there is a sense of ambiguity; there is no explicit meaning, but perhaps there is a narrative from within the layers of their appearance. Sometimes, they come together akin to a family portrait, mirroring the interconnected of individuals from different walks of life. Ogden’s boxhead human and robot sculptures tackle the dichotomies of society. The symbols of the artist’s brand, they are two parts of a whole. Human boxheads personify the limited capabilities of the human mind, their emotions and actions constrained from within a box in their heads. But remove that box from within, comes together the endless opportunities of autonomy and freedom in the form of a literal, physical boxhead.

Peter’s characters come alive on the canvas after being conceived from clay model creations. The philosophy of his practice involves painting anything that exists and turning it into something unique. It is not about something, but to be something. These characters exist to be seen, and be experienced, through their forms and movements. There is minimized separation between colors and forms within the gradually nuanced palettes and more integrated brushstrokes of his paintings. These elements slowly come together to close the gap between the pictorial and the sculptural and create a three-dimensionality in his characters. Multimedia best expresses the unlimited possibilities of expression in Ogden’s works. Like the coexistence of different cultures and civilizations, mediums such as sculpture, painting, electric lighting, and textiles are prominent in his practice, complementing each other to create a united world of possibilities.

Peter Opheim’s oil paintings are direct references of his distinct clay sculptures. Irrespective of their forms and movements, each figure consists of being different and lively. To him, they should look alive, even if constrained to the surface of the canvas. The imagination and the human condition also play a significant part in the creation of his work: the abstract physical attributes of these beings push boundaries of the unconventional. Family is an inspiration, highlighted through the gathered figures in his new paintings and the collaboration with his son. The boxheads of Ogden Opheim were conceived from a dream that eventually transpired to reality with the founding of his brand. He finds inspiration through the exploration and exposure to digital media and its constantly transforming culture, as well as the different landscapes surrounding him, having lived in nature and in the city. His works are influenced by his interests in philosophy, art, and design within representational and abstract forms.

The beings that exist on the canvas of Peter Opheim’s paintings likely reflects on the kinship of modern society but is subject to open interpretation from the viewer. Ogden’s boxheads tackles the limitations of knowledge by unifying human figures and robots as one entity, reflecting a sense of independence to both the artist and the viewer.

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