Sergio Ruffato's understanding of movement comes form observing dancers and bodies in motion. He attends figure drawing sessions where the model constantly moves through the space rather than holding the pose. The resulting studies are gestural sketches conveying the visual sensation of motion rather than the static appearance of a body. The dynamic lines on paper are then translated into metal sculptures. Using forging techniques, the sculptor is able to work with malleable material when the steel is red hot and end up with a sturdy structure as it cools down. Most pieces are made using only one length of metal that is heated and shaped into suggestive compositions. This process has led to a whole body of work that celebrates the transcendence of movement in a fluid and liberated style. Each sculpture appears as a ribbon floating in the wind that has suddenly taken the shape of a subject and turned into metal.
In quest of the sun rays that weave themselves into the landscapes of southern France, Sergio Ruffato began exploring the different ways of representing sun light and its flickering reflections on water. He has been working in brass to sculpt the various light waves resonating into free standing structures. He has also evolved from the single length of metal into welding several parts into more intricate compositions. The artist's passion for developing metalworking techniques has led him to weave metal into designs inspired by traditional basketry culture. This work flow keeps expanding into new horizons enabling the artist to forge at a larger scale and display his sculptures directly in the landscapes that inspired their creation.
Sergio is a Franco-American artist born and raised in Aix en Provence, France. He received his BFA in sculpture from the Savannah College of Art and Design in 2012 with a nomination for the International Sculpture Center Outstanding Student Achievement Award. He now spends part of the year working in a studio with his family in Aix en Provence, France and the other part traveling to exhibit his artwork around the USA. He was selected to exhibit in the National Salon of Beaux Arts at the Carrousel du Louvre in Paris and invited to display his sculptures at the Biennale of the National Union for Sculptors in Lyon. His first public art commission in France was a 12 foot tall brass vase titled Amphore installed in the city of Marseille. Then he was commissioned to install a 10 foot Sunrise Over the Valley for the permanent collection of the Huntsville Botanical Gardens in Alabama, USA. This was a major stepping stone in his artist journey and confirms his path as an ambassador of the arts between France and the United States.
In quest of the sun rays that weave themselves into the landscapes of southern France, Sergio Ruffato began exploring the different ways of representing sun light and its flickering reflections on water. He has been working in brass to sculpt the various light waves resonating into free standing structures. He has also evolved from the single length of metal into welding several parts into more intricate compositions. The artist's passion for developing metalworking techniques has led him to weave metal into designs inspired by traditional basketry culture. This work flow keeps expanding into new horizons enabling the artist to forge at a larger scale and display his sculptures directly in the landscapes that inspired their creation.
Sergio is a Franco-American artist born and raised in Aix en Provence, France. He received his BFA in sculpture from the Savannah College of Art and Design in 2012 with a nomination for the International Sculpture Center Outstanding Student Achievement Award. He now spends part of the year working in a studio with his family in Aix en Provence, France and the other part traveling to exhibit his artwork around the USA. He was selected to exhibit in the National Salon of Beaux Arts at the Carrousel du Louvre in Paris and invited to display his sculptures at the Biennale of the National Union for Sculptors in Lyon. His first public art commission in France was a 12 foot tall brass vase titled Amphore installed in the city of Marseille. Then he was commissioned to install a 10 foot Sunrise Over the Valley for the permanent collection of the Huntsville Botanical Gardens in Alabama, USA. This was a major stepping stone in his artist journey and confirms his path as an ambassador of the arts between France and the United States.
EXHIBITIONS
2023 An evening of Art in Provence, traveling show with Art in Provence:
- private exhibition on Versailles Avenue in Dallas TX; USA
- public exhibition at the Sullivan's Foundation in Oxford MS; USA
- private exhibition at the Country Club of Virginia in Richmond VA; USA
- private exhibition in Virginia Beach VA; USA
- private exhibition in Raleigh NC; USA
- private exhibition in Sandy Springs GA; USA
2022 A celebration of Art; traveling show with Art in Provence:
- private exhibition in Saint Simons Island GA; USA
- private exhibition in Charlotte NC; USA
- public exhibition at the Mountain City Club in Chattanooga TN; USA
- public exhibition at the Country Club of Jackson MS; USA
- private exhibition in Preston Hollow in Dallas TX; USA
2021 A soiree of Art, traveling show with Art in Provence:
- private exhibition in Huntsville AL; USA
- public exhibition at the Amelia Plantation Chapel in Amelia Island GA; USA
- private exhibition in Lookout Mountain TN; USA
- private exhibition in Fort Worth TX; USA
2020 Anima Mundi; Manifesta 13 Marseille. Commissaire Emmanuelle Luciani for Southway Studio, Marseille
2019 Les Chemins du Sud, Une Théorie du Mineur, Musée Régional d'Art Contemporain, Sérignan; France
Biennale du syndicat national des sculpteurs, Palais Bondy, Lyon; France
Moving Mountains, Private home, Jackson Hole Wyoming; USA
Dogwood Festival, Piedmont Park, Atlanta, Georgia ; U.S.A.
Art & Vin, Domaine la Font des Pères, Le Beausset, Var; France
2018 Pieta, Sacra conversazione curated by Emmaunelle Luciani & Charlotte Cosson, South Way Studio;France
A Celebration of Art, recent works from Provence San Antonio, Texas ; U.S.A
Atelier l’Abeille: Exposition Annuelle, La Prévote, Aix en Provence, France
20 ans de Arts & Vin, Domaine des Aspras, Correns, Var; France
2017 Salon National des Beaux Art, Carrousel du Louvre, Paris, France
23rd Annual Telfair Art Fair, Telfair Museum Savannah, Georgia ; U.S.A.
A Celebration of Art, recent work from Provence Richmond, Virginia ; U.S.A.
A Celebration of Art, recent work from Provence Dallas, Texas ; U.S.A.
Soirée of Art in Coconut Grove, Miami, Florida ; U.S.A.
2016 Sculpture in the Park, Benson Sculpture Garden, Loveland CO, U.S.A
Atelier l’Abeille: Exposition Annuelle, La Prévote, Aix en Provence, France
Parallax Art Fair, Venice Arts Center, Los Angeles, Californie ; U.S.A
Metal Drawings, Consentino’s Nursery, Malibu, Californie ; U.S.A
2015 A View of Provence, Austin, Texas ; U.S.A
Silhouettes and Landscapes, The Mill Studio, Dallas, Texas ; U.S.A
Atelier Agora, parrainer par Ponticelli Frères, Eyguières, France
Rencontre, Anam Cara, Lacoste, France
Atelier l’Abeille: Exposition Annuelle, La Prévote, Aix en Provence, France
Salon International d’art Contemporain, Parc Chanot, Marseille, France
2014 Sculpture and Painting, The Mill Studio, Dallas, Texas ; U.S.A
A View of Provence, Fort Worth, Texas ; U.S.A
Atelier l’Abeille: Exposition Annuelle, La Prévote, Aix en Provence, France
2013 Sculpture and Lithography, Artery, Houston, Texas ; U.S.A
Art in Provence, Culp Associates, Dallas, Texas ; U.S.A
Atelier l’Abeille: Exposition Annuelle, La Prévote, Aix en Provence, France
Rum Eyes and Crows Feet, Sicky Nar Nar, Savannah, Georgia ; U.S.A
2012 Common Forms, Granite Room Gallery, Atlanta, Georgia ; U.S.A
Bombay Sapphire Artisan Series, Mason Murer, Atlanta, Georgia ; U.S.A
Figuratively Speaking, Gutstein Gallery, Savannah, Georgia ; U.S.A
Ready to Walk, Dewberry Gallery, Atlanta, Georgia ; U.S.A
Fifty Years: Orly Air Crash, Millennium Gate, Atlanta, Georgia ; U.S.A
HDR Architects Inc. Gallery, Atlanta, Georgia ; U.S.A
DeFine Art Festival, SCAD, Atlanta, Georgia ; U.S.A
Maison & Objets, Paris, France
2011 Redux, Desotorow Gallery, Savannah, Georgia ; U.S.A
Open Studio Night, SCAD, Atlanta, Georgia ; U.S.A
Small Works, Gutstein Gallery, Savannah, Georgia ; U.S.A
Arttraffic Exhibition, Moonriver Brewery, Savannah, Georgia ; U.S.A
- private exhibition on Versailles Avenue in Dallas TX; USA
- public exhibition at the Sullivan's Foundation in Oxford MS; USA
- private exhibition at the Country Club of Virginia in Richmond VA; USA
- private exhibition in Virginia Beach VA; USA
- private exhibition in Raleigh NC; USA
- private exhibition in Sandy Springs GA; USA
2022 A celebration of Art; traveling show with Art in Provence:
- private exhibition in Saint Simons Island GA; USA
- private exhibition in Charlotte NC; USA
- public exhibition at the Mountain City Club in Chattanooga TN; USA
- public exhibition at the Country Club of Jackson MS; USA
- private exhibition in Preston Hollow in Dallas TX; USA
2021 A soiree of Art, traveling show with Art in Provence:
- private exhibition in Huntsville AL; USA
- public exhibition at the Amelia Plantation Chapel in Amelia Island GA; USA
- private exhibition in Lookout Mountain TN; USA
- private exhibition in Fort Worth TX; USA
2020 Anima Mundi; Manifesta 13 Marseille. Commissaire Emmanuelle Luciani for Southway Studio, Marseille
2019 Les Chemins du Sud, Une Théorie du Mineur, Musée Régional d'Art Contemporain, Sérignan; France
Biennale du syndicat national des sculpteurs, Palais Bondy, Lyon; France
Moving Mountains, Private home, Jackson Hole Wyoming; USA
Dogwood Festival, Piedmont Park, Atlanta, Georgia ; U.S.A.
Art & Vin, Domaine la Font des Pères, Le Beausset, Var; France
2018 Pieta, Sacra conversazione curated by Emmaunelle Luciani & Charlotte Cosson, South Way Studio;France
A Celebration of Art, recent works from Provence San Antonio, Texas ; U.S.A
Atelier l’Abeille: Exposition Annuelle, La Prévote, Aix en Provence, France
20 ans de Arts & Vin, Domaine des Aspras, Correns, Var; France
2017 Salon National des Beaux Art, Carrousel du Louvre, Paris, France
23rd Annual Telfair Art Fair, Telfair Museum Savannah, Georgia ; U.S.A.
A Celebration of Art, recent work from Provence Richmond, Virginia ; U.S.A.
A Celebration of Art, recent work from Provence Dallas, Texas ; U.S.A.
Soirée of Art in Coconut Grove, Miami, Florida ; U.S.A.
2016 Sculpture in the Park, Benson Sculpture Garden, Loveland CO, U.S.A
Atelier l’Abeille: Exposition Annuelle, La Prévote, Aix en Provence, France
Parallax Art Fair, Venice Arts Center, Los Angeles, Californie ; U.S.A
Metal Drawings, Consentino’s Nursery, Malibu, Californie ; U.S.A
2015 A View of Provence, Austin, Texas ; U.S.A
Silhouettes and Landscapes, The Mill Studio, Dallas, Texas ; U.S.A
Atelier Agora, parrainer par Ponticelli Frères, Eyguières, France
Rencontre, Anam Cara, Lacoste, France
Atelier l’Abeille: Exposition Annuelle, La Prévote, Aix en Provence, France
Salon International d’art Contemporain, Parc Chanot, Marseille, France
2014 Sculpture and Painting, The Mill Studio, Dallas, Texas ; U.S.A
A View of Provence, Fort Worth, Texas ; U.S.A
Atelier l’Abeille: Exposition Annuelle, La Prévote, Aix en Provence, France
2013 Sculpture and Lithography, Artery, Houston, Texas ; U.S.A
Art in Provence, Culp Associates, Dallas, Texas ; U.S.A
Atelier l’Abeille: Exposition Annuelle, La Prévote, Aix en Provence, France
Rum Eyes and Crows Feet, Sicky Nar Nar, Savannah, Georgia ; U.S.A
2012 Common Forms, Granite Room Gallery, Atlanta, Georgia ; U.S.A
Bombay Sapphire Artisan Series, Mason Murer, Atlanta, Georgia ; U.S.A
Figuratively Speaking, Gutstein Gallery, Savannah, Georgia ; U.S.A
Ready to Walk, Dewberry Gallery, Atlanta, Georgia ; U.S.A
Fifty Years: Orly Air Crash, Millennium Gate, Atlanta, Georgia ; U.S.A
HDR Architects Inc. Gallery, Atlanta, Georgia ; U.S.A
DeFine Art Festival, SCAD, Atlanta, Georgia ; U.S.A
Maison & Objets, Paris, France
2011 Redux, Desotorow Gallery, Savannah, Georgia ; U.S.A
Open Studio Night, SCAD, Atlanta, Georgia ; U.S.A
Small Works, Gutstein Gallery, Savannah, Georgia ; U.S.A
Arttraffic Exhibition, Moonriver Brewery, Savannah, Georgia ; U.S.A