Patrick Rubinstein
Patrick Rubinstein is a French contemporary artist, famous for his diverse style that represents a mixture of paintings, photos, images, and portraits. As someone who works on the concept of the Op Art, his creations are actually optical illusions and games that offer multidimensional views, depending on the angle.
Patrick Rubinstein was born in Paris in 1960, the year the Beatles first got together in England, and when Brigitte Bardot and Jackie Kennedy’s America were all the rage in France. This cultural influence captured the Rubinsteins as well, but as part of a much larger picture. The family had a voracious appetite for everything happening around the world, savoring each instant and living life to the fullest. Art offered an outlet, while day-to-day life for Patrick was immersed in tenderness. This was the context for much of Patrick’s upbringing, framed by his mother’s passion for film and his father’s knack for experimenting with a range of pursuits. At the age of five, Patrick was first introduced to gouache, and then at eight to Super 8 film.
Optical illusions held an important place in the family’s creative output. “Head towards the tree and stop when you’re standing behind it.” Once the child’s movements were captured on film, a cut would be made with another actor taking his place, and the shooting would begin again. Patrick’s father was constantly dreaming up little vignettes. The whole family played along, expanding the story, making suggestions, in a collaborative whirlwind of creativity.
In 2006, Patrick lost his father, a watershed experience for him that instantly brought to mind the work of Yaacov Agam, a leading pioneer of kinetic art. Grabbing a photo, Patrick folded it carefully, showing his own daughters the visual effect this created. Memories began bubbling to the surface. He began thinking of the portraits he wanted to recast, the pop art that had always inspired him as a child, and the digital age that was opening up new opportunities in the early 2000's.
The technical challenges of 3D artwork were not negligible, but if he could surmount them, Patrick reasoned he could rediscover the infinite freedom of creation, and with it reawaken interest in the work he had done as a young man. After three years of dogged perseverance, at times passing through what seemed like nothing less than the twelve labors of Hercules, victory was at hand. Patrick Rubinstein had perfected his technique, now able to work in any format whatsoever, even monumental ones. He surrounded himself with assistants whom he trained in his art. All that was left was to create.
