This is the first solo museum exhibition of the Brazilian-born artist that showcases her dynamic installations, indoor and outdoor sculptures, and works on paper. The exhibition, spanning two galleries, is a survey of Okumura’s career, with work dating from 1971 through today. Known widely in Brazil for her spatially engaging work, Okumura remains under-recognized in her adopted country of the United States. She actively challenges viewers to question their perception of space through works that blur the line between two and three dimensions. Using simple materials such as string, glass and paint, her artworks balance line, plane and shadow.

On display at SMoCA will be the installation In Front of Light for which Okumura won a prize in the 1977 São Paulo Biennial, along with additional installations from the 1970s and 1980s. These include the colored-string installation, Prismatic Appearance, from 1975, and several wire mesh sculptures recreated from Okumura’s 1984 solo exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in São Paulo, including the installation Labyrinth.

Lydia Okumura: Situations was organized by the University at Buffalo Art Galleries, Buffalo, New York. The exhibition is curated by Rachel Adams, UB Art Galleries senior curator, and is supported by BROADWAY 1602, UPTOWN & HARLEM, and Buffalo Wire Works.