é r i c rou x - fon ta ine

éric roux-fontaine

JARDINS SECRETS

cover: detail from An ordinary man 39¼” x 39¼” | opposite: Eyeland 55” x 47¼” | above: An ordinary man 39¼” x 39¼”

axelle.com

© 2015 Éric Roux-Fontaine

2 | Goya’s dream 47¼” x 55” Jardin secret 47¼” x 51” | 3

4 | Around midnight’s garden 31½” x 39¼” Aparté 31½” x 39¼” | 5

6 | Atuona 39¼” x 47¼” | 7

“Originally the garden was an enclosed space, just as the artist workshop is, where man tried to force nature to fit the human scale, such as in the giardino segreto (secret garden during the Renaissance). One can then say that the concept of a garden takes its roots in man – the herb garden, Zen garden, communal garden, garden of delights - each one is an attempt for mankind to define its relationship to the world and to nature.

Today, the scale is reversed; the world itself has become a garden, which can’t be enclosed by a wall (thankfully!). The man who once attempted to shape nature to his will for centuries, taming the plants by putting them in a cage, imposing his rhythm and moods, realizes that trees communicate, forests are moving, and some plants grow tired of their surroundings and disappear here only to reappear thousands of mile away…

With Jardins Secrets, I try to explore those new relationships where man finds himself, somehow, dealing with “his” nature. Each canvas can then be considered as a modest attempt to recapture the enchantment of the world. It is not about magic, but simply looking at it from another perspective - the gardener is somehow uprooted!”

8 | La belle histoire 39¼” x 47¼” Escape 23½” x 23½” | 9

10 | Moon dog 23½” x 23½” So faraway so close 23½” x 23½” | 11

12 | La voce della luna 47¼” x 51” Hesperides 39¼” x 47¼” | 13

14 | Solstice 39¼” x 47¼” Souvenir de l ’inconnu 26¼” x 31½” | 15

16 | Mermaid Avenue 59” x 67” To the moon and back 23½” x 23½” | 17

18 | Bain de minuit 31½” x 31½” Nemo 26¼” x 31½” | 19

20 | Voodoo swamps 23½” x 47¼” (Signed and numbered limited edition print available) | 21

22 | La note bleu 23½” x 23½” Aven pach mende 31½” x 31½” | 23

24 | Moon walk 23½” x 23½” | 25

Roux-Fontaine was born in 1966 in the Savoy Region of France. He enrolled at the Fine Art School of Saint-Etienne at the young age of 17 and graduated Suma Cum Laude 5 years later. Since his first solo exhibition in 1991, he has enjoyed sellout shows and overwhelming success throughout Europe. In 1995, the Musée des Beaux-arts of the city of Chambéry and the Musée Paul Dini of the city of Villefranche-sur-Saône acquired works which to date are part of their permanent collections. The Museum of the city of Lyon and the Centre de Cultura Contemporania of Barcelona (Barcelona Contemporary Arts Center) both featured his work in 2008. The same year, Spanish private arts foundation Josep Niebla presented his first retrospective. In 2011, he was a guest speaker at the renowned TED event in Lyon. His work was recently featured at the Rotterdam, Paris, London and Dublin art fairs. His studio is now in Lyon, France but he spends a great deal of time gathering inspiration for his work by traveling internationally.

His multi-media body of work is largely inspired by his travels throughout Central America, India and Eastern Europe, specifically to Borucan & Romani communities. He is artistically inspired by historical greats such as Eugene Delacroix as well as contemporary painters, such as Peter Doig and Miquel Barceló. He likens his dreamlike perception of the world to literature by Alejo Carpentier, João Guimarães Rosa and the poet Tsigane Rajko Djuric and films by visionaries such as Serbian Emir Kusturica, German Wim Wenders and American Jim Jarmusch.

eric roux-fontaine

26 | Fitzcarraldo 39¼” x 47¼” (Signed and numbered limited edition print available) La grande marée 23½” x 23½” | 27

28 | above: Le jardin premier 23½” x 47¼” back cover: One night in the garden of the world 47¼” x 51”

SOLO EXHIBITIONS

2015 Waltman Ortega Fine Art, Miami

2014 Outbound, Galerie Felli, Paris, France

2014 Summer Collection, Axelle Fine Arts, New York

2013 Lunar Park, Axelle Fine Arts, Boston

2012 Neverlandscape, Axelle Fine Arts, New York

2012 Galerie Felli, Paris

2011 Eden, Galerie Le Soleil sur la place, Lyon

2010 Festina lente, Galerie Felli, Paris

2009 Bahra, Galerie Le Soleil sur la place,Lyon

2008 Rétrospective, Fondation Josep Niebla, Gironne, Spain

2008 Ivre de la jungle, Galerie Felli, Paris

2008 Elvis has left America, Septembre de la photographie, Lyon

2008 Rromano than, La Roseraie, Brussels

2007 Galerie le Phenix, Brussels

2003 Sind, Galerie Olivier Houg, Lyon

2002 Jardin Nomade, Rez d’Art Contemporain, Ville de Meyzieux

2001 Whispering in paradise, Bridge Gal. Dublin, Ireland

1999 Galerie Olivier Houg, Lyon

1998 Terrains et territoires, Maison de l’Image et du son, Villeurbanne, France

1995 Voyage au centre d’un musée, Musée des beaux-arts de Chambéry, France

1991 Mundo Nuevo, Galerie Metropolis, Paris

SELECT GROUP EXHIBITIONS

2013 Summer Collection, Axelle Fine Arts, New York

2013 Axelle Fine Arts, Boston

2011 Ponts, Palais des Papes, Avignon

2010 Slick 2010, Paris St Art Strasbourg

2008 Le territoire et ses limites, commissaire, Rencontres de la Photographie, Arles

2008 Frontières, Lille

2008 Septembre de la photographie, Lyon

2007 Galerie Felli - Paris

2007 Musée Paul Dini, Villefranche

2007 FRONTERAS, Musée des cultures contemporaine, Barcelona

2006 FRONTIÈRES, Lyon, France

2006 Galerie le Phenix, Brussels

2005 Galerie le Phenix, Brussels

2004 Acquisition AIB Fondation, Ireland

2004 Art fair Dublin

2003 Rotterdam Art fair, Holland

2001 Les chemins de la peinture, Centre d’art d’Oyonnax, France

2000 Big Torino, Biennale, Italy

2000 Bridge Gallery, Dublin, Ireland

1998 Terrains et territoires, Maison de l’Image et du son, Villeurbanne, France

Born in 1966 - Franceeric roux-fontaine

472 West Broadway, New York | 212.226.2262