A artist’s way of life
Jean-Philippe Richard has been sculpting for over thirty years. His approach to sculpture is figurative, exclusively exploring the non-realistic female form. He is a self-taught sculptor and works without a model, which allows him to overcome the constraints of reality. He is an experienced technician, despite his unconventional training: his first pieces were made of bronze, in a craft foundry he created in the Provencal village where he has been based since the mid-1970’s. He then took an interest in crystal, creating sculptures such as Émeraude before becoming one of the leading artists of the Daum crystal manufacture. His latest experiences have lead him to use white or colored enamel, silver plating or nickel plating over large pieces.
For Jean-Philippe Richard, the concept does not come before creation but is implied within the material.
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His sculptures are recognizable thanks to a peculiar shape that remains partially embedded in a rough base. The result, which is always striking, is a balance between a silhouette attached to a thick, hard base and an energy that makes the work seem ready to fly off. There is no question about Rodin's influence, which the artist does not hesitate to acknowledge: it can be observed in figures of nudes such as Pleine Lune, and more recently in the series « Femmes-étoiles ». With their smooth motion, these highly sensual but delicate works reveal the power of these shapes. The bodies are denuded, sometimes the remains of a well-draped fold of fabric runs along the curves, as for Angelica.
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Nevertheless, the work of Jean-Philippe Richard is primarily known for easily identifiable profiles, slithering like a stretched out « S ». The sculptures display an upright refined style. The sculptor surely took inspiration in the sacred Kore, an ancient Greek sculpture of the archaic period: serene faces, thin bodies, arms restrained by a draped fabric. Towards the bottom, the base reverts to rock or mineral. Paradoxically, even though the bodies of his women are constrained and stretched out, they are also respected, idealized. The artist emphasizes some parts of the anatomy of his models in order to reach his ideal of beauty, as Ingres did. Thus, for his full-length works, the artist is fond of a solemn hieratic figure, looking far removed from the world. The sculptor carries within his works an expression of this sensitivity; these women are lost in another world, that we contemplate from the outside. A world with a binary rhythm, symbolized by both its strength and its gentleness.
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In his way, Jean-Philippe Richard gives to contemporary figurative sculpture a new simplicity, using the representation of women as in ancient statuary. Classic and contemporary, he is an uncommon but popular artist, even if he has gone against the grain of the contemporary art world. The sculptor directs his work more and more towards timeless concepts of art: harmony, beauty, the sensitivity of feelings. He has said: « Each sculpture should constitute an absolute maximum with few elements. Especially for the essential things: for example, anybody should be able to see an expression even when the eyes are absent. »