Cécilia Andrews
" Wondering and Looking "

April 17 (Thu) - June 1 (Sun), 2025

Art is an invisible resource, 2025
37x25,5 cm
Image rights ADAGP, 2025 Cecilia Andrews

Gallery 38 is pleased to present Cécilia Andrews' first solo exhibition in Japan "Wondering and Looking”. Andrews' works, created through various mediums such as painting, sculpture, and drawing, exhibit a distinctive sense of color. Her artistic vision is deeply influenced by her childhood and the sensibilities she developed through her experiences of moving across national borders.

Born in 1969 in Chile, Andrews spent her childhood in a community of leftist political activists, intellectuals, and artists. Despite the turmoil of the military dictatorship, she recalls her early years as "beautiful," having been raised in an intimate, liberal community surrounded by nature. These experiences fostered her deep interest in nature and led her to depict it in her works. At the same time, the stark contrast between the peaceful beauty of her surroundings and the cruelty of political oppression shaped her unique perspective on the world. In her twenties, Andrews moved to Paris, where she immersed herself in art and continued to explore the world. She states, "Nature is the origin of my artistic thought and remains my greatest source of inspiration." Her encounters with various cultures, religions, philosophies, and landscapes became the foundation of her creative process. Through her works, Andrews repeatedly addresses themes of visual complementation and duality. She contrasts elements such as urban and natural landscapes, abstraction and figuration, and even the textures of materials within a single piece̶juxtaposing rough plaster with smooth resin, for instance. Her pursuit of "balance" involves confronting opposing forces to seek a neutral point. While paradoxical at first glance, this approach is natural to her, as she has learned that contradictions exist in every country and place. Through this process, she continuously searches for harmony within chaos.

Human body parts such as hands and heads frequently appear in her works, rendered through diverse mediums and colors. These expressions, though highly abstract, remain symbolic. While they may relate to contemporary racial movements such as Black Lives Matter, they primarily function as motifs that embody the contradictions Andrews has consistently explored̶how humans, despite their fundamental sameness, can both empathize and love, yet remain ignorant of other cultures and diversity. The human body in her works serves as a reminder of our shared humanity, conveying a universal message of compassion that embraces these contradictions. Another recurring material in her works is braille paper. In this exhibition, she has incorporated aluminum imprinted with braille. Her encounter with this medium dates back to when a friend gifted her the braille edition of Geo, the French equivalent of National Geographic. The absence of images, which would typically dominate such a publication, and the presence of countless raised dots prompted her to reconsider the nature of "seeing." It led her to question whether those with vision truly "see" the world around them. This contemplation on "blindness" became integrated into her works, expressing a silent prayer for communication beyond language, through tactile and visual perception.

Themes of blindness, human portraiture, and the balance created through the interplay of different materials and colors inevitably raise questions about equality. For this exhibition, particular attention has been given to the spatial arrangement of the works. Andrews invites viewers in Japan, a different cultural context, to reflect on how the dialogue between the pieces within the exhibition space influences their perception and fosters new harmony.

The title "Wondering and Looking" encourages us to wander and contemplate, embracing the act of seeing with a renewed perspective.

Cécilia Andrews
Lives and works in Paris

1969 Born in Chile 

1995/96　
Glass Techniques, Fundación del Vidrie , Barcelona, Spain 

1994　
Glass blowing course with Xavier de Mirbeck, Paris, France

1993
MFA (DNSEP) Diploma of Fine Arts with Master's Degree in Painting,
Pontifical Universidad Católica, Santiago, Chile

1991
BA (DNAP) Bachelor of Art, Pontifical Universidad Católica, Santiago, Chile

Exhibition Details :

Cécilia Andrews
" Wondering and Looking "

Date:  April 17 (Thu) - June 1 (Sun), 2025
Hours: 12:00 − 19:00
Closed on  Mon, Tue and National holidays, 17th (Sat) May
Place: Gallery 38

Supported by ：Embassy of France in Japan / Institut français