“Rug” is too humble a term for Maximo Laura’s works. If we encountered one of these woven beauties on the floor, we’d leap back and circle it as if it were electrified. Complex, colorful, and astonishingly detailed, they reward a lengthy consideration with surprises at every turn. Laura, a Peruvian, sets pre-Columbian iconography into modern arrangements of saturated colors and expressive shapes. Animals, illusory images, and even whole stories seem to have taken up residence within the alpaca fibers on his loom, resulting in creations that seem more organic than deliberate. These would be gorgeous paintings; the fact that they are weavings, with all of the forethought and mathematics this art requires, makes them phenomenal. Northrup King Building, 1500 Jackson St. N.E., Minneapolis; 651-430-1848; www.artandes.com
Leave a Reply