Gustavo Vélez: Le dimensioni dell’equilibrio
“Vélez’s complex forms, which introduce botanical observations into ideal mathematical constructions, suggest an expansion beyond the third dimension into the fourth: time. The form itself becomes an event unfolding in time, and for this reason the sculptural work becomes perfectly analogous to a musical composition or a dance choreography.”
Eike Schmidt
Director of the Museo e Real Bosco di Capodimonte in Naples and former Director of the Uffizi Galleries in Florence.
Oblong Contemporary Gallery is pleased to announce Le dimensioni dell’equilibrio, a major exhibition dedicated to Gustavo Vélez, curated by Francesca Sborgi with a contribution by Eike Schmidt.
Presented by the City of Pietrasanta from 11 June to 20 September 2026, the exhibition celebrates thirty years of Vélez’s sculptural practice and his long-standing connection with Pietrasanta, the city where he has developed much of his work in marble and bronze.
The exhibition unfolds across the historic centre and Marina di Pietrasanta, creating a dialogue between monumental sculpture, architecture and landscape. Works are presented in some of the city’s most iconic locations, including Piazza del Duomo, the Complesso di Sant’Agostino, Piazza Carducci, Piazza dello Statuto, Piazza XXIV Maggio and the pier of Marina di Pietrasanta.
Vélez’s sculptures explore the tension between weight and lightness, solidity and movement. Created in Carrara marble, bronze and steel, the works rise from unexpectedly narrow bases and appear to rotate around an invisible axis. Their rigorous geometry is softened by fluid lines, openings and passages that allow light, space and the surrounding environment to become part of each composition.
The artist describes this approach as a form of relational art: sculpture that is not only observed, but experienced. Viewers are invited to move around and through the works, discovering framed perspectives of Pietrasanta, the Apuan Alps and the sea.
Born in Medellín in 1975, Gustavo Vélez lives and works between Colombia and Pietrasanta. His work has been exhibited internationally across Europe, Asia and the Americas, and his monumental sculptures are included in public and private collections worldwide.
You are kindly invited to the official inauguration of the exhibition on Saturday, 18 July 2026, at 7:00 p.m., at the Cloister of Sant’Agostino, Pietrasanta.
Gustavo Vélez
Le dimensioni dell’equilibrio
Curated by Francesca Sborgi
With a contribution by Eike Schmidt
City of Pietrasanta | 11 June–20 September 2026
Inauguration: Saturday, 18 July 2026, at 7:00 p.m.
RSVP: fortedeimarmi@oblongcontemporary.com
W: +39 3357055914