Biography

Ophelia Cornet was born in Belgium to a family of artists and designers. After moving to the United States, she pursued photography and painting at Rutgers University. Ophelia then made her home in New Mexico, where she served as Head Art Instructor of the Albuquerque Museum for 20 years. 

Ophelia now paints full time in her adobe studio, where she combines her lifelong passion for photography and oil painting into a distinctive multi-step technique she calls Fotura. The proprietary technique involves posing and photographing the model, printing, cutting, assembling images and applying layers of plaster, oil paint, and cold wax to realize the vision. Her work is grounded in feminism, spirituality, and surrealism. From legendary art critic Donald Kuspit, “Cornet’s paintings are aesthetic masterpieces as well as tours de force of feminist art.”                               

Artist Statement

Macro and micro approaches coexist within my work. I am rooted in the lineages of feminist theory and Buddhist practice, while simultaneously expressing deeply personal impressions. 

At the broad scale, I create in response to a world that feels excessively masculine, accelerated, and materialistic. The oppression of women throughout the millennia has resulted in a cultural suppression of feminine qualities such as nurturing, introspection, and collaboration—the very qualities that can save us as a species. In embracing the fullness of femininity, my artworks act as windows into an alternate approach.

On a personal level, these works are an intimate meditation. Female protagonists, portrayed as subject rather than object, are front and center. They are unabashed, held in tableaus of stillness and presence. I work to remind viewers of a deep wellspring of self-knowing—a catalyst for purposeful action.

I employ a proprietary technique, Fotura, which blends original photography with painting, real with surreal. Black and white images stop time in the present moment. Surreal compositions and a language of symbols serve as a transmuting force. Finally, the physical act of applying paint invites possibility and speaks to our intrinsic agency. 

“Self-Actualizing Women: Ophelia Cornet’s Feminist Symbolism”

Essay by Donald Kuspit

Shows and Acquisitions                               

Lapis Room, Old Town Albuquerque

Albuquerque Museum Collection 

City of Albuquerque Art Collection 

Albuquerque Museum Art’s Thrive exhibit 

Susan Eddings Perez Gallery, Canyon Rd. Santa Fe

MoMo Gallery Taos

MoMo Gallery Santa Fe

Mano de Oro, Orellana, Spain  

ABQ BioPark (permanent large installation) 

516 Arts, Albuquerque

Bernalillo County Building  

Mariposa Gallery, Nob Hill, Albuquerque 

Act 1, Taos