In the ever-accelerating rhythm of modern life, where moments blur into an indistinct haze, Omi Art Gallery’s Magic Moment exhibition invites us to pause and reflect. The collection is an evocative exploration of transient beauty, ephemeral sensations, and the weight of a singular moment suspended in time. Bringing together a diverse array of artists from around the world, the exhibition captures these ‘magic moments’ through a range of mediums—oil on canvas, digital art, photography, and video—each offering a unique interpretation of this elusive theme.
At its core, the exhibition poses the question: What constitutes a magic moment? Is it an intimate whisper between lovers, the unexpected harmony of light and shadow, or the quiet defiance of resilience in the face of hardship? Through a stunning visual and conceptual dialogue, the artists challenge us to define our own understanding of fleeting transcendence.
Highlights from the Exhibition
Among the standout works, A Moment of Peace by Carley Adberstein evokes the fragility of intimacy. Painted in acrylic on canvas, the piece captures the stillness of a moment after an intimate encounter—where the world dissolves and time ceases to exist. The subject, reclining in a state of vulnerability, exists in an unfinished space, emphasizing the impermanence of emotion.
James Mellor’s The Fool plays with the dichotomy of fate and free will, presented in oil on black canvas. This haunting work invites multiple orientations, forcing the viewer to decide its true meaning. The faceless figure, crowned by wild hair and flanked by black and white sunflowers, symbolizes the infinite potential of a moment, hinting at the Tarot’s archetype of The Fool—eternally poised at the precipice of fate.
In Lost in Translation, Yachan Yuan uses video as a poetic medium, exploring the untranslatable beauty of words like Mångata, Gluggaveður, and Saudade. The work speaks to the inadequacy of language to encapsulate emotion, positioning nostalgia and longing as fundamental human experiences. Similarly, Parnia Jomehpour’s photographic work A Portal to Bygone Eras distills memory into a single frame—an old television set in a bustling shoe store, bridging past and present in a poignant meditation on time.
Sarah Durno’s To See and Be Seen is among the more visceral interpretations of the exhibition’s theme. A woman, her eye pried open, offers herself to the scrutiny of a crow, the bird’s beak poised to take what she surrenders. The piece is a stark meditation on vulnerability, self-exposure, and the risk inherent in allowing oneself to be truly seen.
The dynamism of movement and energy finds its apex in When Light Becomes the Artist by Susan Fraser-Hughes. Working with charcoal on frosted Mylar, the artist allows natural light to complete her composition, crafting an ever-changing interplay of shadow and illumination that transforms the piece from moment to moment. Light, here, is not only a subject but an active participant in the creative process.
The Intersection of Memory and Myth
Christina Godley’s Dragons Landing draws inspiration from Viking mythology, with fire and interwoven colors creating a theatrical foreground against an ominous backdrop. The piece pulses with primal energy, capturing the essence of heroism, struggle, and cyclical rebirth. In contrast, Composition with a Peacock by Tatiana Abramova explores the surreal beauty of a fleeting sight—a white peacock momentarily disrupting the harsh geometry of modern architecture, a living apparition dissolving into memory before it can be truly grasped.
Technology as Sensory Experience
Maria Skiteva’s Intermixture stands at the crossroads of the digital and the tactile. A video work exploring human sensuality through the lens of 3D-printed textures, it blurs the boundary between material and virtual. Similarly, Hairfuck by Vittoria Rizzardi Penalosa turns the body into a medium of resistance and unity, documenting a ritualistic performance where six women, bound by a single braid of hair, engage in a silent dialogue about societal pressures and shared resilience.
Reflections on the Human Condition
Several works in the exhibition navigate deeply personal narratives, revealing the artists’ struggles and triumphs. Dhruv Sharma’s Medicated, painted in acrylic, is an ode to the human spirit’s endurance against illness. Born from a battle with chemotherapy, the piece juxtaposes the stagnation of the body with the persistent motion of the mind. Likewise, Lisa Murray’s Sound, Light, Love and Life reclaims the moment of personal transformation—the day she chose to leave heroin behind—reminding us that magic moments are often those that define the trajectory of our lives.
Natalia Egyed’s Fiery Bliss encapsulates the quiet magic of contemplation. The painting’s subject stares into a fire, lost in the liminal space between wakefulness and slumber. The interplay of warm and cool tones evokes a sense of longing, making the piece a mirror for the viewer’s own nostalgia.
A Celebration of Presence
Through its rich array of voices and mediums, Magic Moment is ultimately an exhibition about presence—about noticing, capturing, and immortalizing the fleeting. Whether through the poetic gaze of photography, the raw energy of brushstrokes, or the immersive nature of video, the works invite us to embrace the transitory with reverence and awe.
The exhibition not only champions artistic vision but also serves as a reminder that the sublime exists in the smallest of moments. A sunbeam piercing a windowpane, the brush of fingertips against fabric, the ripple of water against the shore—these are the experiences that, when fully embraced, transform the ordinary into the extraordinary.
Omi Art Gallery’s Magic Moment is a testament to the enduring power of art to suspend time, crystallizing fragments of existence into something eternal. And in this act of witnessing, we too become part of the magic.