As the title of the exhibition suggests, there are 13 small paintings that form a sophisticated cycle of works Gideon Ruby (Tel-Aviv, 1973) presented in a world exclusive at the Milan branch of the Monica de Cardenas gallery, inspired by the Polaroids by Carlo Mollino (Turin, 1905 – 1973), along with other unpublished works with which the Israeli painter confirms a sensibility characterized by delicate tones and fluidity Brush strokes are conveyed that deliberately cover the faces of the protagonists.
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13/13The Gideon Rubin exhibition in Milan
A special feature of the artist, who says about the exhibition: “My work is extremely minimal, there is very little, but everything is rehearsed. I focus on the materiality of the scene, the feeling of painting a velvety purple curtain right next to a beautiful elongated female figure and her flesh.” And intriguing and seductive female figures follow one another in various poses showing the body – There is no need to delve into the details – A brush movement evokes a scene, a sensation that opens a narrative left to the viewer’s imagination. Of the works that accompany the thirteen homages to Mollino, some depict a woman from behind with a braid or with unkempt strands of hair, anonymous figures that convey moods and states of mind. Gideon Rubin says he first saw Mollino’s Polaroids in Milan and was struck by the quality of these small, intimate, almost hidden images, but also by their explosive and intensely sensual nature. Two of the works inspired by these Polaroids depict male figures envisioned by the painter: “Although Mollino only photographed women, I don’t think the images should be gendered, I can bring in luscious male meat. Or rather, the mere act of painting can be an extremely sensual experience when it comes to making and seeing art.”
Rebecca Delmenico