One of the most celebrated artists of the decade can add another major accomplishment to his impressive list. Ralph Rucci has once again given the world a piece of himself through his enticing artwork.
The Serge Sorokko Gallery in San Francisco is now showing the “Ascension” exhibit for art enthusiasts to view and admire. This latest exhibition features the amazing paintings of the American Haute Couture designer and visual artist known as Ralph Rucci.
It is a remarkable 30-piece collection of mixed media paintings on canvas and the works range in time from 2011 all the way through 2012.
On Friday, December 14, 2012, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., the gallery hosted a private reception in Rucci’s honor in anticipation of the opening. Gallery owner Serge Sorokko was thrilled with the new exhibit. He expressed in his own words, “After five years of anticipation, we are elated to bring Ralph’s extraordinary new paintings to the gallery. In the years since his last exhibition, the world has seen the continual evolution in his exceptional fashion designs, and now we have an opportunity to see the same evolution in his pictorial work.”
Art and fashion are so closely intertwined in Rucci’s world. As a coveted designer, he has developed fabrics with luxury mills throughout Europe, using advances in technology to create new textiles. He has revived historically important cloths by studying historical archives. His prints are based on his own paintings, a source of inner inspiration. Classic Renaissance works from the contemporary masters of Antoni Tàpies, Cy Twombly and Francis Bacon are high on Ralph’s list of art masters that have made a lasting impression on him.
Rucci’s creative work synthesizes his interest in both expressionist and minimalist tendencies of post-war and contemporary art. He incorporates fabric collage along with a distinctive Japanese-inspired aesthetic. The end result becomes large-scale works that are simultaneously imposing and understated with a delicately defined and unmistakable presence.
One of Rucci’s career choices had he not become the highly acclaimed artist/designer he is, would have been psychiatry. Creating art (channeling, as Rucci refers to it) is the greatest psychological release. It is his interpretation of a therapy session. Speaking from his experience Rucci explains, “Painting is different and purer than fashion design because I allow myself to be taken and fed into the canvas. I discovered fashion as an artistic medium. Later in life, my trap door opened and I found my ability as a painter and a fine artist – to be an extension of my psychiatric work. This is my future – melding the two arts.”
See these great works of art for yourself at Serge Sorokko Gallery at 55 Geary Street, San Francisco, CA 94108 from December 15, 2012 through January 18, 2013.
