Artist Ophelia Cornet was born in Belgium to a family of artists and designers. After moving to the  United States, Ophelia pursued photography and painting at Rutgers University. Once in New Mexico she became the Head Art Instructor at the Albuquerque Museum for 20 years. She 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 developed and calls "Fotura." 

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In moving from real images to surreal compositions, this work suggests our innate ability to transmute the mundane into something alive and inspired. This sense of alchemy is a common thread throughout Ophelia’s work. Rather than identifying with our bodies and accomplishments, we can enjoy an intimate and expansive reconnection with the present moment. While anyone can relate to this message, Ophelia is particularly interested in women’s experiences and relationships with themselves. Her compositions fête female protagonists in snapshots of an intimate otherworldliness.

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"My lifelong passion for original photography and oil painting has developed into a distinctive style pairing the two mediums, a technique I call "Fotura." The multi-step process involves posing and photographing the model, printing, cutting, and assembling images, and applying layers of plaster and paint to actualize the vision. In moving from real images to surreal compositions, this work suggests our innate ability to transmute the mundane into something alive and inspired."