Gideon Rubin

Gideon Rubin asks what it means to be a contemporary painter, using found anonymous photographs, often from the turn of the century, Rubin selects characters and scenes which he conveys onto canvas or linen. Using broad brushstrokes and a muted palette the figures and landscapes are often abstracted; details are effaced and scenes move in and out of the picture plane.

The surfaces of the paintings reveal strata of previous paintings or are scraped back to reveal the canvas beneath, in other instances Rubin leaves entire areas of canvas untouched so that they become integral parts of the work whilst drawing attention to the paintings support. Embedded within layers of paint or receding from view it is as if his selected characters are entrenched in multiple histories or are unrecoverable in the here and now. And as such the artist asks what it means to paint and to transplant people and objects into his selected medium. In bringing paintings representational possibilities and its self-reflective qualities within reach of each other Rubin asks the viewer to consider the act of painting and its legacy.

Gideon Rubin (b.1973) is an Israeli artist based in London. He has had numerous international solo exhibitions, most recent include 'Memory goes as far as this morning' at Herzliya Museum of Contemporary Art, 'Delivering Newspaper' at Rokeby Gallery, London (2015), ‘On the Road’ at Hosfelt Gallery San Francisco and ‘Last Year’s Man’ at Galerie Karsten Greve, Paris (2013); ‘Measured Distance’ at ROKEBY, London and ‘Brief Encounters’ at Galerie Karsten Greve, Cologne (2012). Selected group exhibitions include 'Nourish' at Napa Valley Museum, CA (2015), 'Disturbing Innocence' at FLAG Art Foundation, New York (2014), ‘To Have a Voice’ at the Mackintosh Museum, Glasgow and ‘Kunstlerkinder’ at Kunsthalle Emden, Germany (2012); ‘Lines Made By Walking’ at Haifa Museum of Art and ‘Facelook’ at Tel Aviv Museum of Art (2011); 'To Change Air a Little' Beit Bialik, Tel aviv (2010); Beijing Biennale at the National Art Museum, China and ‘Family Traces’ at Israel Museum, Jerusalem (2009). Gideon Rubin was the recepient of ‘Shifting Foundation’ grant in 2014 and Outset residency program, Tel Aviv in 2013. New monograph on Gideon's work will be published by Art / Books Publishers in July 2015.

Gideon Rubin is represented by Galerie Karsten Greve Paris, Cologne, St Moritz, ROKEBY, London, Hosfelt Gallery, San Franscisco and Alon Segev Gallery, Tel Aviv.

For additional information about this artist, visit Mutual Art