Oil on Canvas
27,6 x 74,8 in (70 x 190 cm)

Jean-Pierre Roc-Roussey was born outside of Paris in 1951. He currently divides his time between his studios in Montmartre and the South of France. Roc-Roussey lives in his own world of imagination, full of enigmatic people presented his unique style and elongation of form. The artist uses themes from neo-classicism and the Renaissance that he mixes with elements from the Middle Ages and Eastern civilizations to create over-sized figures and portraits, accentuating dramatic proportions, yet maintaining a gracefulness in their body language. The faces of the subjects seem to be masked or to display a mask like expression, as if they wanted to remain anonymous, with no identity, yet they tell a thousand stories. The diversity is in the body language and theatrical costumes that seduce as well as fascinate the viewer. A signature characteristic of Roussey’s works is the beautiful fabrics and vibrant colors to stylize the costumes of the subjects in a baroque style. With exquisite precision, Roussey interprets the texture of shimmering materials that metamorphose his large figures into striking patterns paradoxically swallowed up and exalted by elaborate robes, gowns and costumes they wear as the viewer’s vision is treated to a robust tapestry. Like life, Roussey’s compositions are known for their comedic and ironic elements. They show us the fragility of the world which is invisible yet apparent. There is no backdrop in his paintings, yet the background exudes a sense of tumult. Through his paintings. Roc-Roussey reflects on his philosophy that war and fighting cannot bring about anything good. Instead he brings the viewer’s gaze towards the beauty of diversity and difference through his elaborate figures expressed in intricate details that exemplify the artist’s reputed and uncompromising attention to details Roc-Roussey has won numerous awards and has exhibited in the Opera Gallery venues around the world, including: Singapore, London, New York, Hong Kong, Seoul, Paris, Geneva and Monaco.