Discover the Oma Forest
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Map of groupings
Select which multi-part artworks you wish to discover, to do this, use the map or the list of works
Select which multi-part artworks you wish to discover, to do this, use the map or the list of works
- Entrance
- Entrance hall
- Rest area
- Viewpoint
- Painting
- Entrance
- Entrance hall
- Rest area
- Viewpoint
- Painting
List of groupings
Route through the forest
- Entrance
- Entrance hall
- 1. Horizontal line
- 2. The kiss
- 3. Naiel's rainbow
- 4. Horizontal, diagonal, vertical
- 5. Concave convex relationship
- 6. The lightning bolt
- 7. Team 57
- 8. Verticality and its movement
- 9. The motorcyclists
- 10. The march of humanity
- 11. The red giant
- 12. The eyes
- Rest area
- 13. Homage to Malévich
- 14. The circle
- 15. Homage to El Greco
- 16. Animals of the forest
- 17. The flame
- 18. White undulation
- 19. Twisting of white lines
- 20. Pointillism
- 21. Enveloping rhythms
- 22. Orange and violet composition
- 23. Nuclear threat
- 24. Coloured circles
- 25. The mosque of Cordoba
- 26. Minimal
- 27. Two-dimensional diagonal
- 28. Open circles
- 29. Curve and counter curve
- 30. Negative positive
- Viewpoint
- 31. Flourish
- 32. I love you
- 33. The yellow rhombus
- 34. Homage to The Oak Tree
Details of groupings
1. Horizontal line
This is the first multi-part work created in the Oma Forest. It is easy to paint a white line, a circle, a curved line or a brush-stroke on a canvas, but painting a two-dimensional line in a three-dimensional space is a far more complicated endeavour. The Renaissance idea of perspective must be inverted so that larger elements are placed at the rear of the composition and smaller ones in front so that they look as if they are on the same plane. This work is thus conceptually important as an aid in understanding the rest of the ensemble.
So art began to well up in the forest with a work that was more than just a white line.
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
2. The kiss
The Forest welcomes visitors with a kiss. As you walk between the trees they seem to draw closer together, touch and throw you a kiss. The Forest is a magical place where images appear and disappear, where the artist surprises you again and again, where the trees talk to each other and urge you to search them as they pose questions and reveal their answers.
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
3. Naiel's rainbow
One of the most attractive, best known figures in the Forest is Naiel's Rainbow, which is named after one of Ibarrola's grandchildren.
"My mother tells me that she used to walk up to the hill when she was preganent with me, at the time when Granddad started painting the forest"
, says Naiel Ibarrola. It is a powerful, heartfelt vision of a rainbow glimpsed through the trees in the forest after a shower.
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
4. Horizontal, diagonal, vertical
In this work Ibarrola deconstructs a rainbow on three trees, reducing it to its most basic elements. He uses black to highlight the brightness of the colours of the rainbow.
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
5. Concave convex relationship
Painting on a backdrop such as the forest, with trees on different planes, was a real challenge that forced Ibarrola to rethink his ideas on dimensions and perspective.
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
6. The lightning bolt
One stormy day a bolt of lightning struck the forest and Ibarrola painted its bright, zigzag course trapped among the trees. In his own words.
“The lightning bolt and the rainbow came out to play & paint with me in the forest”
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
7. Team 57
Ibarrola picked the upper reaches of the forest for his homage to Team 57, the group of artists to which he belonged together with Jorge Duarte, Juan Serrano, Jorge Oteiza and Néstor Basterretxea, whose goal was to bring art closer to the public. To do this, they used bright, contrasting colours that represented all the variety of people, languages, types and customs found in society.
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
8. Verticality and its movement
In this work the yellow strokes help to build up and enhance our understanding of the vertical nature of the tree trunk. They run vertically up the tree from the ground, grow and expand upwards at different angles.
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
9. The motorcyclists
One day Ibarrola's attention was drawn to the sound of a group of motorcyclists who came to see his work. He was inspired to paint this curious figure by these visitors who, like his own son, rode up to the forest on motorcycles.
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
10. The march of humanity
This work represents the evolution of humanity as seen by Ibarrola. Some of the figures start in the depths of the forest as plain vertical lines, but as you move forward they become walkers climbing the hillside. They represent men and women denouncing social issues, people from factories and demonstrations. But they are also the men and women of the past, those who lived in the Santimamiñe caves. They walk slowly in single file and once they are released from their burdens they become children again. You can see them playing among the trees. On the other side Basajaun, the guardian spirit of the forest, looks on.
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
11. The red giant
The red giant looms suddenly from between the trees that make up the March of Humanity, towering over the sloping ground with a power that draws your gaze. Could this red giant be Ibarrola himself, giving us a knowing wink?
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
12. The eyes
At this point in the Forest, the past and present meet. The discovery of cave paintings in Santimamiñe so impressed Ibarrola that he decided to depict the eyes of those first artists who lived in the forest.
In his own words
“the eyes of nature, the eyes of the past and the eyes of the present look on just as you do. Life has more eyes than I do, even if I move around and gaze at it from multiple points of view.”
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
13. Homage to Malévich
This work is a little homage to the reductionist geometrical figures of abstract painter Kazimir Malévich, who produced such controversial works (for his time) as White on White and Black Square.
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
14. The circle
This incomplete circle challenges visitors, creating an optical illusion in which Ibarrola again plays with perspective. On the living backdrop provided by the trees, figures come to life and what looks like a simple circle becomes a hollow that draws you into the depths of the forest. .
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
15. Homage to El Greco
Ibarrola created this composition out of his admiration for El Greco, inspired by the colour tests still visible on the edges of the latter's paintings.
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
16. Animals of the forest
Ibarrola also found room among the trees for the animals that he saw when he went up to the forest to paint. In the most magical part of the forest, you can now see 16 animals that he painted as his work progressed.
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
17. The flame
The Flame represents the heat, light and protection offered by fire in the caves of our ancestors. Ibarrola depicted this powerful idea on five trees charged with keeping the fire alight.
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
18. White undulation
White Undulation was originally part of The Flame, but it later came to be seen as a separate work in its own right. Both White Undulation and The Flame grow up from the ground and rise into the heights of the forest.
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
19. Twisting of white lines
This work is a study in how to draw straight lines on a curved surface. Ibarrola saw this as an important piece, because it sparked many thoughts in him that he later put into practice elsewhere in the forest.
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
20. Pointillism
Ibarrola brought techniques from Pointillism into his work, as he did also with other art movements such as Impressionism and Cubism. He painted tiny dots of colour filled with light that expand skywards from the floor.
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
21. Enveloping rhythms
This is one of Ibarrola's boldest pieces. On five trees, he created the effect of light that seems both to emanate from and converge on their centre. His use of bright colours such as violet and green enhances this sensation.
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
22. Orange and violet composition
The blend of negative and positive gives rise to a number of different combinations in this thought-provoking play of vertical and horizontal brush strokes with curved and straight lines in orange, violet, blue and green.
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
23. Nuclear threat
As an aid to understanding this piece, it is worth remembering Ibarrola's words about the nuclear issue:
“Between the trees you can see Gernika, and Picasso's painting named after the town reminds me of the bombing of Nagasaki and Hiroshima, militarism and the menacing nuclear world, so that I throw up my hands and cry 'Enough!'".
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
24. Coloured circles
Semi-circles scattered across the trees invite visitors to link them together or separate them as they walk by, in an open dialogue between the artworks and their beholders.
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
25. The mosque of Cordoba
Ibarrola's interpretation of the Mosque of Cordoba stretches across 22 trees. Their trunks become columns that intertwine to give the appearance of delicate, high arches.
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
26. Minimal
Blue, green and purple stripes link up and become rhythms that seek to express as much as possible with the minimum number of elements. This piece can be seen in term of the Minimal Art movement, which is characterised by its use of pure colours and basic geometrical shapes.
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
27. Two-dimensional diagonal
Once again, a white line painted across the trees upsets the idea of horizontality and turns into a rising diagonal that cuts precisely across the landscape.
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
28. Open circles
This piece is painted on a single tree. Its location in the forest makes it the final expression of the many, closely-knit coloured circles.
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
29. Curve and counter curve
Ibarrola's original experimentation in the forest gave rise to a new interpretation of the visual effect of curved lines painted on the actual curved surface of a tree trunk.
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
30. Negative positive
The conceptual and visual interplay between the positive and negative sides of a painting is also reflected among the trees. Can a form be positive and negative at the same time?
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
31. Flourish
This piece is also known as "Flourish by Mariluz" after Ibarrola's wife, who helped paint some of the artworks. It is a simple, sincere expression of his thanks to her for her involvement.
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
32. I love you
This is an enigmatic piece, as it is not known who the message is for. It could be a greeting or a farewell to his family, to visitors or to the forest itself.
If you prefer you can listen to the description of this work:
33. The yellow rhombus
This artistic ensemble is in the process of being painted.
34. Homage to The Oak Tree
This artistic ensemble is in the process of being painted.
Set 1 of 34
Self-guided tour
Admission to the Oma Forest is free, but you must book ahead. The forest is best visited in full daylight, and visitors are asked to follow the rules and recommendations at all times.
Guided tour
Guided tours are available, but only on specific dates at certain times of the year, so please enquire in advance at the Oma Forest-Santimamiñe visitors' centre by telephoning 94 465 16 57 or emailing oma@bizkaia.eus
The Oma Forest app
Download the new Oma Forest app and make your visit to the Forest an unforgettable experience.
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Make a stop
Take a look at our recommendations on places to stop for a drink or a bite to eat.
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Practical information
Some useful tips to help you plan your visit to the Forest of Oma.
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