Chris Ofili: Poolside Magic

Victoria Miro is pleased to announce the opening of a new gallery in Venice. The inaugural exhibition is Poolside Magic by Chris Ofili. The exhibition comprises a suite of pastel, charcoal and watercolour works on paper, which are being shown together for the first time. Poolside Magic, in which a man in coat-tails serves a naked woman beside a swimming pool, riffs on themes of sexuality, mutability, magic and the occult, making reference to the vibrant and sensuous landscape and culture of Trinidad, where the artist lives and works. Source material for the series includes a photograph of Trinidadian artist Boscoe Holder (1921–2007) at work in his Port of Spain studio. Opening during the Vernissage for the 57th Venice Biennale, the exhibition marks a return to the city for the artist. Ofili represented Britain at the 50th Venice Biennale in 2003, when he presented his ambitious exhibition Within Reach, and in 2015 a suite of Ofili's paintings were included in All The World’s Futures, the 56th International Art Exhibition of the Venice Biennale, curated by Okwui Enwezor. Chris Ofili’s exhibition Weaving Magic is at the National Gallery, London from 26 April to 28 August 2017.