The Young Artist Captivating the Art World: Andres Valencia's Profiles in Color Comes to New York

Profiles in Color: The Paintings of Andres Valencia brings a dazzling collection of portraits, sculpture, animation, and studio treasures to New York

NEW YORK, NY, UNITED STATES, July 14, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Profiles in Color: The Paintings of Andres Valencia is a focused solo presentation by the celebrated young painter, on view July 16–19, 2026 at FREE PARKING 16 Morton Street, New York. The installation presents two dozen three‑quarter‑profile portraits — including the playful Dual, an eye‑popping work set against a brilliant red ground — that bring a 21st‑century sizzle to the stately history of portraiture. Exhibition hours are 12:00 AM–6:00 PM, Thursday, July 16 through Sunday, July 19.

Valencia’s painterly universe pairs bold color and fractured anatomy with playful distortion and sharp line to produce images that feel both indebted to art history and definitely new. This New York presentation spans early painted‑book portraits through recent paintings, drawings, sculptures, and animation videos, and includes a short making‑of video showing Andres creating preparatory drawings on blank canvases. The installation also displays inspirational 3D figures that inform his process: handmade MMA figures, sculptures of renowned artists, and selections from his personal collection of historical puppets rescued from street‑thrift and antique markets.

Drawing on a laser‑focused fascination with 1950s music culture, contemporary MMA and boxing, and visual‑art precedents rooted in his family’s Mexican heritage and twentieth‑century master painters, Valencia produces large, dramatic, vividly colored figurative work. Born in 2011 and based in California, he has been painting since early childhood and often works on a step ladder to produce large‑scale canvases using oil sticks, oil, and acrylic.

New York audiences will be welcomed by live presentations featuring Andres Valencia alongside his parents, Elsa and Guadalupe, who will discuss the role art‑making has played in their lives.

About the Artist
Andres Valencia (b. 2011) is a California‑based artist known for large‑scale, vividly colored figurative paintings influenced by Cubism. Teachers in his public school Visual and Performing Arts (VAPA) program recognized his talent at an early age. Valencia has attracted international attention from collectors and the media; his work has been featured on Good Morning America and in The New York Times, Forbes, Artnet News, and Smithsonian Magazine. His auction debut, Ms Cube at Phillips Hong Kong, sold for more than three times its high estimate. He has donated works to benefit amfAR, UNICEF, Box of Hope, and the Klitschko Foundation.


About the Curator
Simon Watson is an independent curator and arts educator based in New York and São Paulo. A veteran of the cultural scene on three continents, he has conceived and curated more than 350 exhibitions for galleries and museums. Watson’s area of curatorial expertise is in spotting visual artists with outstanding potential, many of whom are now represented by some of the most established galleries in the world.

About the Traveling Exhibition
Profiles in Color: The Paintings of Andres Valencia is a traveling solo artist’s exhibition curated by Simon Watson. It began its travel in March 2026 at Nassau County Museum of Art, New York. It includes 50 paintings, framed drawings, fired‑clay sculpture, and a stop‑motion animation video. The traveling presentation foregrounds Valencia’s large, vividly colored figurative paintings alongside 35 objects from his vintage‑toy collection and an immersive re‑creation of the artist’s studio. Touring nationally and internationally, the exhibition will be accompanied by a bilingual (English/Spanish) 180‑page catalog to be published January 2027.

Contact:
Tiffany Cummins
Talent Resources
tiffany.cummins@talentresources.com

Simon Watson
Simon Watson Arts
US +1.917.513.9957

Tiffany Cummins
Talent Resources
tiffany.cummins@talentresources.com

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