Solenn Heussaff and Olivia d’Aboville’s Exhibit Takes a Closer Look at Life and Nature

Longtime friends and artists Solenn Heusaff-Bolzico and Olivia d’Aboville’s inaugural exhibit at Provenance Gallery, “VĪTA,” takes a closer look at the natural world and people as it depicts and offers an examination of how life is in a constant state of flux. Curated by Stephanie Frondoso, the artists’ collective work is a creative collaboration that reflects both strength and vulnerability, traits that are both present in nature and humanity. 

Solenn Heussaff x Olivia d’Aboville: Vergere I (60″x48″ canvas: acrylic, posca pen, oil pastel; Textile: digital print on 10 yards of handwoven abaca polyester fabric, acrylic ink, pleated, stitched on canvas) (Photo: Paolo Pineda/Provenance Art Gallery)

Initially known as a muralist who explored social realist themes, Heusaff-Bolzico extends her artistic breadth to new, textured expressions. This can be seen in her partnership with d’Aboville, whose expertise hinges on manipulating contemporary Filipino textiles and its visual textures. Some examples would be their 60” x 48” dialogic works, two massive digital prints on handwoven abaca polyester fabric—pleated, stitched on canvas, and combined with acrylic, posca pen, and oil pastel. 

Frondoso, as a curator, aims to present the artists’ work in a way that’s interspersed with one another and integrated into a cohesive show. In addition to creating visual harmony—juxtaposing Heusaff-Bolzico’s larger, detailed paintings with d’Aboville’s geometric, abstract works— this is to set the tone and mood for an immersive experience that warmly invites viewers into the artists’ introspection of how people rely on nature as a way of understanding their own lives and how it is predisposed to evolving, growing. 

Solenn Heussaff (Photo: Paolo Pineda/Provenance Art Gallery)

For Heusaff-Bolzico, her latest paintings are meditations on personal growth and change. “After going through different life stages, I think there’s more detail and layers to what I paint. As we go through life, you’re figuring out who you’re becoming. You’re going through so many thoughts and emotions because you don’t do the same things anymore or even relate to the same people. People think and feel different things depending on where we are in our lives, what stage we’re in, and we adapt. It made me look at nature as a source of peace and hope. For this exhibit, I wanted to flow into that stream of having a better future and a better tomorrow.”

She draws some inspiration from a plant she nurtures at home and observes how new leaves grow every month and how they shift to give way for new blades to sprout out. There’s constant movement and harmony. To the artist, it shows that nature isn’t just nature: it’s also how people are. Change and adapting are constant. There is an acknowledgment of both vulnerability and resilience.

On working with  Heusaff-Bolzico, d’Aboville points out that more than being friends for decades, it was an enriching collaboration: “Being an artist, I rarely have the chance to collaborate so I always grab the opportunity when it presents itself. Collaborating with someone as driven and motivated is a dream and it puts the standards high. It brings the best out of you.”

Olivia d’Aboville (Photo: Paolo Pineda/Provenance Art Gallery)

Heusaff-Bolzico also finds the experience enriching: “It was serendipitous because I wanted to do something different, but something that many people could relate to, which, in this case, is nature. Olivia’s art has fabric elements and is very organic and we were able to link our works seamlessly.”

A rich collaboration by two artists with completely different styles, “VĪTA” is poised to be a memorable dialogue about nature and life. “VĪTA” will be on view this month of December.