Valentino Cortázar and Daisy Dodd-Noble: Dialogues

LAMB Gallery is pleased to present Valentino Cortázar and Daisy Dodd-Noble: Dialogues.

Dialogues is an annual exhibition series presented by LAMB Gallery, dedicated to bringing together two artists whose practices offer distinct yet complementary perspectives. Now in its second iteration, the exhibition joins Colombian painter Valentino Cortázar (b. 1949) and British painter Daisy Dodd-Noble (b. 1989), both of whose surreal approaches reimagine the art historical tradition of landscape painting. Through the pairings in Dialogues, LAMB Gallery aims to explore shared affinities across generations and geographies, creating space for new connections between artists, ideas, and viewers, while fostering fresh interpretations through the harmonious encounters that emerge in the gallery space.

Cortázar’s artistic journey began at the age of eighteen, when he left Colombia to embark on a series of global travels. During this time, he absorbed the technical language of the art institutions in London, Paris, and Madrid, while developing a deep appreciation for the rich visual quality of the Mediterranean, learning from the vibrant landscapes of Greece and Spain. Returning to Colombia, Cortázar applied his new knowledge with a keen eye for his homeland’s natural beauty as he depicted the peaks of the Sierra Nevada and the sandbars of Barú. His paintings transcend literal representation, merging time and memory through an ethereal interplay of light and color. “You are brave and have freedom in your hands,” Salvador Dalí once told him– a sentiment that encapsulates the vitality and joy within Cortázar’s spirited approach to painting.

Dodd-Noble crafts compositions that conjure an otherworldly quality, capturing landscapes that feel both desolate and untouched. Her caricatured forms of nature are animated by a sense of wonder and a distinctly playful colour palette. Though rooted in the rural scenes of her native United Kingdom, Dodd-Noble’s practice is increasingly shaped by her travels. The works featured in Dialogues depict places she has been drawn to for their luminous light and abundant plant life, which includes Santa Teresa, Costa Rica; Ibiza, Spain; and Sintra, Portugal. Across these dreamlike compositions, she depicts cypress trees, banana plants, palm trees, pines, and bougainvillea, inviting viewers into her deeply observed vision of the natural world.

The landscapes of Cortazar and Dodd-Noble transcend cultures, painted from various locations and contexts, yet evoking universal sensations of quiet observation and a poignant appreciation of nature's beauty. Their works offer a dreamlike, almost fantastical utopia, particularly resonant in an era marked by dramatic environmental change, where the desire for escapism remains a prominent theme. Cortázar and Dodd-Noble have never met, yet their works appear to speak intuitively to one another, unified by a reverence for the natural world and an instinct for translating its imagery into something that speaks across boundaries.

The exhibition will be on display at LAMB Gallery from May 2nd to June 28th. For more information, please contact: info@lambgallery.com