Harmonious Contradiction: MASA and Sotheby’s Debut Collaboration.

Exhibition view of the Masa Galeria artists’ bronze sculptures at Sotheby’s East Hampton Gallery. Photo By Alejandro Ramirez Orozco.

Copal Table by Hector Esrawe. Photo By Alejandro Ramirez Orozco.

Silla Mitla by Pedro Reyes. Photo By Alejandro Ramirez Orozco.

The first collaboration between Mexico City-based MASA Galeria and Sotheby’s, Harmonious Contradiction presents eight contemporary artists producing polished bronze and brass floor works for MASA. These extraordinary contemporary pieces sit in conversation with a selection of post-war and contemporary works curated by Sotheby’s.

The collaborative exhibition centres around newly produced works by the likes of Pedro Reyes, Mario García Torres, Héctor Esrawe, Adeline de Monseignat, Brian Thoreen, Milena Muzquiz, EWE Studio and Atelier van Lieshout. These contemporary pieces are presented alongside works by pioneering artists of the 20th century and today, including Ellsworth Kelly, Sam Francis, Philip Guston, George Condo, Chisto, and Adam Pendleton—all of which are available for sale.

Atelier van Lieshout presents a polished bronze work of two abstract figures in the process of taking care of a third person. Caretaker Side Table is part of a series of works representing the different human feelings of love, compassion, sorrow, charity, enjoyment and relaxation.

Mario García Torres‘ bronze chair responds to Bruce Nauman’s 1965 sculpture A cast of the space under my chair. In Torres’ version, the mould is cast from the negative space of the Silla Equipal, a traditional design from Jalisco, Mexico.

Adeline de Monseignat’s three-piece interactive sculpture is inspired by the many layers protecting a child during gestation. Simultaneously the work also talks about the different phases of pregnancy and how a mother-to-be feels a constant re-evaluation of who she is–growing, adapting, morphing. It thus encompasses the many Skins a woman embodies during that period of transformation. Like a snake, she sheds skins that no longer fit, making room for someone new.

Brian Thoreen surprises with Bronze Cache, a monumental and playful 7.5 foot tall sculpture that hides a cache or bowl at the top. By placing this potentially functional component out of easy reach, Thoreen allows us to focus our attention on the sculptural form.

Pedro Reyes presents Mitla Sillas, striking brass works which are inspired by the Mitla archaeological site in Oaxaca, specifically the rhythmic repetition of motifs, fretworks, and symmetry of the pyramids.

Masa Design Gallery Launches Inside An Abandoned 1970s Mansion in Mexico City.

Helmed by prominent creative’s from the art, design, and architecture disciplines, Masa is a nomadic gallery that will move between venues, each of which is to challenge the traditional perception of a gallery space.

EWE Studio continues its exploration of Mexico’s rich artisanal and material heritage with Copal Coffee Table. This work consists of six hemispheres carved in volcanic stone by master stonemasons, which are then sand-casted into polished bronze, leaving traces of the characteristics of the original volcanic material on their surface. The table’s structure is unique for its technical complexity, whilst defying gravity through the cantilever.

Milena Muzquiz has been working in ceramics for over 15 years, with a strong interest in African wood block stools, whose shapes are always organic and somewhat curved for the human body, she is interested in how they are a means to embody one’s soul. To Muzquiz, functional objects are sacred, with the stools offering a place of rest and reflection, often accentuated through their organic forms.

Héctor Esrawe’s artworks imbue common materials with an elevated sense of value or purpose. In Gear Coffee Table, the honeycomb cardboard shape reveals a series of aleatory vertical patterns with a sculptural expression, transforming an everyday coffee table into a precious sculptural ornament.

Running till the 18th of September, Harmonious Contradiction is the third and final summer exhibition at Sotheby’s East Hampton Gallery.

EWE Studio's Design Showroom Inside 1950s Dance Hall in Mexico City.

The showroom occupies two-thirds of the space, while the rest of the hall is home to Esrawe Studio’s multidisciplinary architecture & design practice.

A Cast Of The Space Under My Chair by Mario García Torres. Photo By Alejandro Ramirez Orozco.

Caretaker Side Table by Atelier van Lieshout. Photo By Alejandro Ramirez Orozco.

Skins by Adeline de Monseignat. Photo By Alejandro Ramirez Orozco.

[Images courtesy of Masa. Photography by Alejandro Ramirez Orozco.]