Bodies of Work
.. In my experience to be or “become” self-reflective is somehow similar to being in the zone for a sportsman or playing out of one’s own mind for a jazz musician. In my practice I try to operate from a space of flow, a space of non resistance where something beyond the limits of my skin connects the inside and outside of my body with a larger, ever expanding form of selfhood that through the sense of touch reveals itself into the object while it’s being made, to the point that it feels as if the object is actually making me.
“... I live and long for these unsustainable moments. I would dare to say that there is something rather addictive and profoundly mystical about them as they are exhilarating, liberating and full of life. My artistic practice is nothing but a clumsy attempt to hold onto them via articulating them amiss to an audience.
-Jorge Rivera
About
Jorge Rivera, a Spanish-born artist, earned his MA and Ph.D. in Fine Arts/Sculpture at the Royal College of Art in London. Awarded numerous honours and residencies, he lived and exhibited internationally in Los Angeles, Tokyo, Berlin, and Vienna. Rivera's diverse media exploration encompasses bronze casting, marble carving, inflatable vinyl printing, film, performance, drawing, and painting. This versatility reflects his engagement with various cultures and contexts throughout his life.
Currently based in Taipei, Rivera is working on a project combining oil painting, glass sculpture, and moving images to explore Eastern aesthetics' emptiness within a Western contemporary framework.
Rivera's artistic statement delves into the intersection of dimensions, movement, and stillness, exploring the psychological space of dreams and imagination. Trusting touch over sight, he aims to make the subconscious tangible, creating tactile paintings and sculptures that invite touch and emphasize drips and fingerprints. His work draws inspiration from archaic and mythical elements, weaving narratives to reveal deeper truths of the human condition.
Rivera cherishes unsustainable moments, describing them as addictive, mystical, exhilarating, liberating, and full of life. His artistic practice is an attempt to articulate and share these moments with an audience, bridging personal myths to form a global archetype that transcends social and cultural differences.
Jorge Rivera’s work has been exhibited in more than 20 solo and 50 group exhibitions, some of which including: “Children @ Play” ArtDoor Gallery, Taipei, Taiwan (2023); “Jorge Rivera’s Children @ Play” Art Solo, Taipei Expo Park, ArtDoor Gallery, Taipei (2022); “Rivera in Riviera Ponte Verita” Ten Haaf Projects, Cannero Riviera, Italy (2022); “Art Basel, VIP Event Space” Ten Haaf Projects, Basel, Switzerland(2024); “Arco Lisboa’24” Altiba-9, Lisbon, Portugal(2024); “Art Libris” Alriba-9, Barcelona, Spain (2024)
His work is part of private and public archives and collections such as, among others: Reina Sofia, Museo de Arte Contemporáneo, Madrid, Spain; Sotheby’s, London; Royal College of Art, London; World Design City, Takumi M, Nagoya, Japan
