Jean-Pierre Rives: New Sculptures and Paintings
SAN FRANCISCO, CA (October 15, 2014) - Serge Sorokko Gallery will host the world premiere of French artist Jean-Pierre Rives' very latest creations. The exhibition of over 20 works entitled Jean-Pierre Rives: New Sculptures and Paintings will open to the public on September 19, 2014 and remain on view through October 14. Jean-Pierre Rives will be in attendance at an exclusive opening party at the gallery on September 18, from 6:00 to 8:00 in the evening.
"Jean-Pierre's newest paintings incorporate sculptural elements with sheets of metal painted and collaged into the surface of the canvas," explains gallery owner Serge Sorokko, "resulting in a medium that reflects both his brilliant skills as a painter as well as a sculptor."
The story of the world-renowned French artist Jean-Pierre Rives is fascinating. A champion rugby player in his youth and a widely collected artist, Rives is a legend in his native France, as well as throughout Europe. Touted by the BBC as a "cult figure", he is a subject of numerous books and documentaries, as well as the recipient of the Order of the Legion of Honor, the highest decoration in France.
The bond between art and sport feels natural to Rives, as he believes that profound emotions can be found in both. His powerful paintings and his remarkably fluid steel sculptures were called by the French Dépêche du Midi "a marvelous mixture of suffering, grace and beauty."
The 15 paintings in the exhibition took nearly two years to complete. A group of monumental stee sculptures - some of them completed in 2014 - round-out the exhibition.
Concurrently, Rives' highly successful current exhibition of sculptures at the Musée des Jacobins in Auch, France, has been extended through the end of October due to its overwhelming resonance with the French public and record numbers of visitors to the museum.
Jean-Pierre Rives' sculptures have been showcased at public venues around the world including the prestigious Jardin du Luxembourg in Paris, a stone's throw from the classical Senate building, in 2002. This installation marked the first time sculptures were exhibited there since Auguste Rodin's exhibition more than a century ago. Other large scale shows included the annual Sculpture By The Sea exhibition in Sydney, Australia, in 2007, an exhibition in the historically important Royal Park in Brussels, Belgium, in 2009, and an installation on the Dag Hammarskjold Plaza in Manhattan, New York, in 2010, to name a few.
