October 16th -November 20th 2022

Opening reception October 16th, 6-8 PM

“We live in a world populated by structures- a complex mixture of geological, biological, social, and linguistic constructions that are nothing but accumulations of materials shaped and hardened by history.”

- Manuel De Landa

Central Fine is thrilled to announce Loriel Beltran’s new exhibition Over the Sun, Under the Earth. The presentation, which consists of new works by the Miami based artist, focuses on the tensions that appear in the notion of accumulation, and the ‘piling’ of time. In these works, Beltran documents a moment of generation, and follows it through to its conclusion, leaving us with a bird’s eye view of a complex system of relationships. These paintings - which are formed from strips of paint that can take months to dry use time to focus our attention, not segment it.

In this presentation, Beltran uses his own studio tables as support for the paintings, tilting them on their side so they themselves function as walls. As a result, the tables become extensions of the work, framing the paintings as monoliths. In the gallery’s space, their large size becomes obstructive, compelling the viewer to navigate around them as one would navigate around a labyrinth. From the front, the viewer is presented with works defined by reactive color, rhythms, textures, and their variations. From the back the viewer is presented with the scaffolding of the works themselves. The tables which originated the work become performative as exhibition objects, where the lines between each strip of paint, echoes the emptiness of each drawer, reminding us of the absence and invisibility of what laid there, and now is solidified on the surface. The viewer stands simultaneously with the work, and its creation.

Across these works, Beltran presents us with a study of that which is geological, and empathetic. In Landscape / Body / Screen paint strips and non-recyclables merge creating a work that looks something like the bisection of a landfill - a bisection that has been combed through and studied with a curious eye. What we leave behind is our history, and the history of our future ­­–Beltran lets us see it all at once. In this way these works can be thought of as mirrors, reflecting The Real and its impact, back to us.

Loriel Beltrán was born in Caracas, Venezuela in 1985.

Beltrán’s work has been included in group exhibitions at institutions including Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum, Florida International University, Miami, FL; Pérez Art Museum Miami, Miami, FL; Institute of Contemporary Art, Miami, Miami, FL; Museo de Arte Acarigua-Araure, Araure, Venezuela; and The Fabric Workshop and Museum, Philadelphia, PA, among others.

He has presented solo exhibitions at the Bridge Tender House at The Wolfsonian – Florida International University, Miami Beach, FL; Fredric Snitzer Gallery, Miami, FL; Museum of Art and Design, Miami Dade College, Miami, FL; and Locust Projects, Miami, FL. Recently, his work was presented at “CENTRAL SOUNDS” at Luhring Augustine, Chelsea, New York; “There Is Always One Direction” at the de la Cruz Collection, Miami, FL. Beltrán held his first museum solo presentation at the Museum of Art and Design, Miami, FL (November 6, 2021 – May 1, 2022). He lives and works in Miami, FL.

Loriel Beltran was the recipient of the South Florida Cultural Consortium in 2015.

His works are part of the collections of the Institute of Contemporary Art; Miami; the Perez Art Museum, Miami; de la Cruz Collection, Miami-Key Biscayne; Marquez Art Projects, Miami; etc.

Text by Hunter Osking, Loriel Beltran, Betty McGhee; and Diego Singh

Loriel Beltran would like to thank Fabian Leotteau for the conversations throughout the production of this body of work.