Rolf ball, born in 1945 in Strasbourg, lives and works in Heiligenstein in Alsace.
After studying decorative arts in Strasbourg under the direction of Camille Hirtz, his teacher and friend, he continues with an ethnology DEA at the University of the Human Sciences of Strasbourg, and then studies of the art of the icon at the Institute of Russian icons in Meudon.
His artistic career is at the intersection of the religious, ethnology and abstraction. It weaves constant acrements between orthodox iconographic inspiration and the will to break with traditional codes to transmit an intercultural emotion.
Its aesthetic evokes classic stained glass windows, but is mainly inspired by Orthodox iconographic art to create works that dialogue with tradition while engaging.
By the age of 40, Ball enriches his artistic approach through his studies in ethnology, especially in the traditional African, parietal arts and those of pre-Columbian civilizations. He writes a brief on the Byzantine icons, restores ancient works, and then chooses to renew the iconic tradition in a personal way.
It retains the orthodox technique of the puddle, where the pigments are applied dropwise on a black background, but reinterprets freely the shapes: Smiling characters, Mayan silhouettes, African masks, childish figures, the Everything in bright colors and partitioned by geometric lines. This mixture of multiple influences is carriers of a message of tolerance, opening and mixing.
Rolf Ball has presented his work in various exhibitions in Alsace, especially in the context of the sacred art paths in 2022 in Rosheim, where his bright stained glass paintings have been highlighted in a Romanesque church.
In 2023, a great exhibition at the Museum of Malco Folie in Barr, entitled Dream course, brought together nearly 50 canvases, confirming the wealth and singularity of his artistic career.
The 125 Gallery offers an original screen printing of Rolf Ball, representative of its colorful and mixed universe. This work testifies to its singular plastic language, where iconographic influences and contemporary research meet