* 1977 Neuchâtel (NE/CH)
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The Swiss Léopold Rabus is definitely one of the most exciting figures in current figuration. After a year at the Art School de Meuron in his native city (1993/94), Rabus completed his training, first at the École d'Art in La Chaux-de-Fonds and finally from 2000 in Paris (Cité Internationale des Arts).
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In his work - virtuoso, often large-format paintings, but also works on paper, sculptures and installations - Léopold Rabus seeks the uncanny, the fantastic, the bizarre. Visionary and surreal worlds open up, enlivened by realistically exaggerated people and animals. The figures appear distorted in perspective, similar to the comic style known as "super deformed", with oversized heads. However, they are far from all the cuteness that usually goes hand in hand with it - grotesque creatures like from another world.
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Léopold Rabus seeks the inspiration for his works in the nature of his Swiss homeland. On his long forays he photographs abandoned houses, eerie forest clearings and much more, then combines this with pictures from magazines or books. From here, inspired by a strong imagination, he arrives at his compositions: disturbing and humorous, frightening and attractive at the same time.
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Léopold Rabus is one of the up-and-coming artists of the present. His last solo exhibitions were in Montpellier and Amsterdam in 2015 or 2010, accompanied by a comprehensive catalog book from Hatje Cantz-Verlag, in the Gemeentemuseum Den Haag, the Museum zu Allerheiligen in Schaffhausen and the Kunsthalle Wilhelmshaven.
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In 2019/20 Rabus presented his latest works at the Musee d'art et d'histoire de Neuchâtel (MahN) in a dialogue between art history and the museum's extensive collection. The winner of the "Premio Lissone" from 2005 and winner of the "Swiss Art Awards" (2006) lives and works in his birthplace Neuchâtel.
