Retrospective of ‘naive’ modernist in Geneva

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There are only a few weeks left to catch a retrospective of the rarely seen work of French artist, René Rimbert (1896–1991) before the exhibition closes on 24 March 2014.

In Rimbert’s first retrospective in nearly 20 years, there are 29 paintings and eight works on paper – still lifes, cityscapes, and interior scenes – including Flemish Landscape (1972), Small Landscape With Posters (1969), Le Douanier Rousseau Rising to Glory and Reaching Posterity (1926), and Homage to J. B. Siméon Chardin (1970).

 ‘Over the course of his 60-year career, Rimbert produced only 276 paintings and his work is very rarely accessible to the public’, said Sofia Komarova, director of Artvera’s. ‘This exhibition presents an exceptional selection reflective of the artist’s career and search for the Ideal and the Beautiful.’

Beginning with Rimbert’s early still lifes, characterized by their quiet compositions and still strongly influenced by Cubism, the exhibition illuminates an artist deeply sensitive to the symbolism of everyday objects and scenes. Most of the displayed works consist of street scenes, painted with intimacy and insight, particularly in his depictions of ‘unknown Paris’ – a series of contemplative cityscapes.

Rimbert’s artistic references range from the Flemish painting of the 17th century to the avant-garde styles of his contemporaries. Rimbert was fascinated and deeply affected by the Delft School and Johannes Vermeer’s paintings. Flemish influences are felt through both the subject and the style of the works, such as Flemish Landscape (1972) and The Antique Dealer (1964).

Rimbert’s piece, The Douanier Rousseau Ascending to Glory and Reaching Posterity (1926) pays tribute to Henri ‘Douanier’ Rousseau, another self-taught modernist. Whereas Rousseau worked as a toll collector (‘douanier’ – customs officer), Rimbert worked as a postman all his life. The painting was exhibited at the Salon des Indépendants in 1926 and achieved a wide critical acclaim but also brought the two painters closer together in the eyes of the critics who were quick to classify Rimbert among the ‘naive’ painters. 

The most representative works by Rimbert in this exhibition are the cityscapes. ‘There is in the deserted streets, in his Dead End Street, an impressive silence, a poetry without literature. Isn’t the sky of a miraculous purity?...’ wrote Journal des Débats in 1928 about Rimbert’s city scenes. In over 20 paintings shown in the Artvera’s Gallery exhibition, assorted structures, churches, chapels, bridges, houses, streets, squares, and dead-end alleys abound. Like a photographer, Rimbert captures the moment of stillness. Serenity pervades the street scenes where the seldom passers-by are discreetly made a part of the composition or nearly disappear into a corner of a painting. These paintings possess sophisticated linear construction characterized by handling of lights and shades, and a luminous, mysterious color palette.

'René Rimbert: Poetry of Silence and Flemish Reminiscences' is on view until 24 March 2014. A fully illustrated 88-page catalogue, featuring over 40 coloor reproductions, has been published by Artvera’s Gallery to accompany the exhibition.

Artvera’s Gallery
Rue Etienne Dumont 1
1204 Geneva
Switzerland