Gideon Rubin
04 - 30 Sep 2010
GIDEON RUBIN
"OTHERS"
Opening, with the artist: Saturday, September 4th, 2010, From 5-9pm
September 4th - 30th, 2010
After having presented the work of Gideon Rubin in collective exhibitions, the Karsten Greve Gallery is pleased to announce the first one-man show in France of the young Israeli artist, who was born in Tel Aviv in 1973. This exhibition entitled “Others”, will include thirty oil paintings and a hundred small gouache paintings on carton from works produced over the past two years.
Gideon Rubin has always done portraits, but over the past few years, his paintings have evolved from his beginnings in realism towards a more simple, quasi minimalist painting style. An eye begins at first as a shadow and then disappears entirely. These anonymous portraits are intentionally left without faces. The artist prefers that his figures evoke souvenirs among his viewers, rather than representing specific identities. He wants the spectator to focus on the painting process, on the medium itself and on a few details that Rubin brings to it, such as the person’s position or their bearing. The artist wants to offer alternative ways of looking at the figures by inviting the viewer to complete the tale or the scene. His intention is to create a painting that functions like an obscure souvenir of someone’s life.
These faceless portraits are inspired by photographs from old photo albums that the artist obtained on eBay from around the world, photos of celebrities or paintings by old masters. In examining these old photos, the artist is seeking a kind of narrative that lends itself to interpretation. His exhibition at the Karsten Greve Gallery in Paris will be devoted to paintings inspired by European photographs of the beginning of the 20th century, as well as photographs of the 1950’s from the Near East. There will also be a parallel theme – summer and winter – with paintings of children by the seaside or in snowy landscapes.
Gideon Rubin uses sandy tones, grey blues and off whites that he applies with large brush strokes. He also uses little touches of red to emphasise a detail that initiates a relationship between the work and the viewer. He likes using canvas or raw linen and often leaves entire areas of these materials untouched so that they become integral parts of the work. He also paints on roughly cut bits of packaging carton, integrating motifs and letters already printed on the carton into his composition. The subtle colours he uses and the fact that the artist often reworks and repaints his works with several layers, further emphasises his desire to bring forgotten lives back to life again.
Gideon Rubin studied at the School of Visual Arts in New York and then at the Slade School of Fine Arts in London where he graduated in 2002. He has had numerous international one-man shows and his works are included in private collections in London, Hong Kong, New York, and Paris and beyond. Gideon Rubin lives and works in London.
"OTHERS"
Opening, with the artist: Saturday, September 4th, 2010, From 5-9pm
September 4th - 30th, 2010
After having presented the work of Gideon Rubin in collective exhibitions, the Karsten Greve Gallery is pleased to announce the first one-man show in France of the young Israeli artist, who was born in Tel Aviv in 1973. This exhibition entitled “Others”, will include thirty oil paintings and a hundred small gouache paintings on carton from works produced over the past two years.
Gideon Rubin has always done portraits, but over the past few years, his paintings have evolved from his beginnings in realism towards a more simple, quasi minimalist painting style. An eye begins at first as a shadow and then disappears entirely. These anonymous portraits are intentionally left without faces. The artist prefers that his figures evoke souvenirs among his viewers, rather than representing specific identities. He wants the spectator to focus on the painting process, on the medium itself and on a few details that Rubin brings to it, such as the person’s position or their bearing. The artist wants to offer alternative ways of looking at the figures by inviting the viewer to complete the tale or the scene. His intention is to create a painting that functions like an obscure souvenir of someone’s life.
These faceless portraits are inspired by photographs from old photo albums that the artist obtained on eBay from around the world, photos of celebrities or paintings by old masters. In examining these old photos, the artist is seeking a kind of narrative that lends itself to interpretation. His exhibition at the Karsten Greve Gallery in Paris will be devoted to paintings inspired by European photographs of the beginning of the 20th century, as well as photographs of the 1950’s from the Near East. There will also be a parallel theme – summer and winter – with paintings of children by the seaside or in snowy landscapes.
Gideon Rubin uses sandy tones, grey blues and off whites that he applies with large brush strokes. He also uses little touches of red to emphasise a detail that initiates a relationship between the work and the viewer. He likes using canvas or raw linen and often leaves entire areas of these materials untouched so that they become integral parts of the work. He also paints on roughly cut bits of packaging carton, integrating motifs and letters already printed on the carton into his composition. The subtle colours he uses and the fact that the artist often reworks and repaints his works with several layers, further emphasises his desire to bring forgotten lives back to life again.
Gideon Rubin studied at the School of Visual Arts in New York and then at the Slade School of Fine Arts in London where he graduated in 2002. He has had numerous international one-man shows and his works are included in private collections in London, Hong Kong, New York, and Paris and beyond. Gideon Rubin lives and works in London.