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Valentina Bilbao created the Bright Series as a set of five unique artworks elegantly and skillfully developed in five different bright colors. She uses on the canvas her characteristic pictorial techniques, beginning with strong strokes of palette knife to place thick layers of paint of the chosen color, and then continuing with an impressive dripping in darker or lighter tones of the main color, creating a dynamic effect that complements the already very powerful painting. The Bright Series, made during the months of July and August of 2019, includes five paintings of 48 x 48 inches. The five colors chosen by Valentina Bilbao are red, blue, yellow, green and orange, which will define the uniqueness of each painting by the use of only one color and the respective dripping on each one of them. The Series was inspired by the classical music for the Hallelujah Chorus included in Part II of the Messiah oratorio, composed in 1741 by German musician George Frederic Handel, b. 1685 – d. 1759, while he was residing in London. Artist Valentina Bilbao says: “I decode the Music to then transform and code it as color. For me, the Music is not only an inspiration, it is the element from which all is born, it is the Artwork on itself, expressed in a different way. My Artwork is completed when I am able to bring the Music to a visual tangible dimension.” Valentina Bilbao, in total synchrony with Handel music and his positive goals, visually transmits in her unique paintings the emotion of depicting the feeling of celebrations that are relevant for humanity and can happen for a diversity of occasions. The Part II of the Messiah oratorio ends with the celebration of God’s Triumph that closes with the vibrant and majestic Hallelujah Chorus. Handel, who had written successful operas, used a similar musical way in the Messiah, a basic structure of chorus and solo singing, few duets and the musical instruments harpsichord, violoncello, oboes, strings, violone and  bassoon. Two trumpets and timpani highlight the movement, energized by repeating Hallelujah and Forever and Ever increased to the highest until reaching a silent break full of tension and a solemn final Hallelujah that expressed Handel’s goal to spread peace and joy. Celebrations can be spiritual Roads to Heaven, Happy Anniversaries, Tributes for Achievements, such as Graduations, Awards, or Successful Events in any life path or career. Valentina Bilbao artistic creativity and pictorial ideas flow natural on her painting, accompanied with the sound that escalates from soft to uplifting, festive and blissful. Then, as she follows in contact with the music, the feelings and emotions that guide her Art take place, when paint and color are transformed into tangible and joyful positive messages that are visual but also spiritual. Valentina Bilbao touches the heart and the soul of the viewers of her works that evoke the forever-changing life of Light and the Universe.

Valentina Bilbao created in 2017 the artwork La Vie en Rose, acrylic on canvas of 50 x 72 inches, merging her painting with the sounds of the worldwide celebrated song, written and performed by French singer Edith Piaf. The artist Valentina Bilbao tells: “As the song says, I believe that love heals.” The main colors in the painting are rose magenta tones to represent how feelings and devotion transcend time. The song inspires the painting that moves on a definite direction, towards happiness overcoming all difficulties and obstacles, like the branches of a plant that grow aiming to the light of the sky. The message is positive, about the goodness of Love bringing joy and bliss. It happens when Love helps to overcome, when Love is envisioned to share, when Love is brought beyond passion and becomes forever. The rose tone of the chosen color by the artist is the right one, not too red or too pink, not too dark or too light, as it is the real love that last all the life. The color is accentuated by the power of the strokes masterly made with the knife palette, while the sprinkles of white, grays and a darker red, can be felt like the challenges to overcome, always illuminated by the light that signals the path. The movement pointing to one side means the action going in one direction to forever complete the circle of life.

Created in 2018 by Valentina Bilbao, THE MISSION, acrylic on canvas of 72″ x 72″, is a unique extraordinary Artwork, defined by the artist as her pictorial representation of the music for The Mission movie by celebrated composer Ennio Morricone, born in Rome, Italy, in 1928. The main protagonist of the film placed in the 1740’s, Spanish Jesuit priest Father Gabriel, enters the northeastern Argentina and eastern Paraguayan jungle to build a mission. The South American Guaraní natives strap Father Gabriel to a wooden cross to throw him in the Iguazu Falls. He saves his life, when reaching the top he plays his oboe and the Guaraní fascinated by the melody permit him to survive. This moment, in which the contrast among the unique sound of the oboe overcomes the whole orchestra playing violins and other instruments, is romantic and delicate, with the oboe outstanding the background melody depicting the water running on the Falls, and then, as magical drops the instruments come alive again. Valentina Bilbao is inspired by the music that she masterly interprets in her painting, as every dripping are the sounds becoming a visual and tangible artwork. The circle means Eternity and forever Love that continues to form in the canvas, while the music complemented by a human choir of voices insinuating beauty and healing, is perceived in the painting. Valentina Bilbao says: “For me music can save lives. Browns, gold, oxide tones in the painting shine, meaning that light overcomes darkness.”

Curatorial Statement by Mariavelia Savino

One of the most exciting discoveries acting as Consultant Curator of an Artist is to see when artists initiate to develop a new path in their creative inspiration and use of technique. Recently, Valentina Bilbao started a new step in her paintings that I consider exquisite, deeply inspired and well developed. She has created very minimalistic and delicate paintings using on her canvas a clean white color for their background. Then, she depicts a definite textured expanding center employing her mastership in the palette knife technique, producing strong visual effects in the same white color selected as background. The result is a extremely attractive White on White artwork absolutely elegant and emotive. But, the Artist doesn’t just stops here, as she continues on some of her new artworks to develop her painting using a monochromatic dripping technique consisting in soft and defined dots made in a selected pastel color. Therefore, while the concentric strong spatula accents stop and soften before arriving to the edges of the canvas, the new drippings address the attention of the viewer towards the ends of the painting creating a feeling of uniqueness and infinite emotion. It is important to note that all these paintings are in synchrony with the music that Valentina Bilbao listen to develop her Art. She absorbs and decodes it when creating her paintings. The music is always there as a spiritual and uplifting companion on the creative process.

Music: by Ennio Morricone from the film Cinema Cinema Paradiso

My name is Valentina Bilbao and I am an artist. I became one because I believe my purpose in life is to share one very important message. To explain myself, the message I intend on sharing is the importance of love… Yes, love, but not the superficial kind we are most often exposed to, but something much more.
I would like to transmit the significance of what love truly is and what it means to love.

Being able to love ourselves is only possible through understanding and accepting ourselves.

Only then do I believe humanity to be capable of giving or receiving love.

I don’t pretend to coach, I’m not here to preach. I am here to remind people that we are all unique and that makes every single person special. There has not been any one like oneself and there will never be. I want to make sure that everyone can keep the power and the light that they have.
Please, understand the importance of sharing that light with every one, every second of your life because you are responsible for the environment you produce.

The world needs you, so please help us by strengthening yourself. This era that we are living in today is very complicated. People base their self-worth off an image and comparisons. This is an era in which nothing is enough.

Exposure to today’s society and social media can sometimes cause a feeling of pressure to change yourself in every sense. To change your face, your body… to feel accepted.

This generation invests a lot of time in their work or studies, as well as working to improve the physical appearance of their body, but often overlook taking the time to better understand and love themselves. We forget to manage our spirituality and emotions and pay a price for that.

Please, take a little more time to nurture your spirituality and to share your emotions.

For this reason, I decided to be an artist. I needed to explain the importance of living a meaningful life. The importance of appreciating what you can’t see, like music. I have always believed that through the music, I could explain what Love is, its power, and how important it is to live ones life to the fullest extent.

At this moment I have started to transform music into color, because through this process I explain better myself and my view of this world”
There is what happens to groups of people in this world: one group is creating and building, and the other is destroying. We have to decide in which group we want to be.

We have the commitment to make and keep better this world, as it is impossible to be in this world, at least one day, without affecting it.
I only come to remind you that we need your light, your power… because you are unique.

Valentina Bilbao