Tomás Rivas
Tomás Rivas has achieved international attention for his investigations of two and three-dimensional space by combining sculpture and drawing techniques that mimic a specific period of art history. Using drywall, a readily available contemporary construction material, Rivas removes the paper topcoat to reveal a three-dimensional sculptural relief. His work examines space, transformation, and disintegration through the rediscovery of classical architecture in a contemporary environment.
Born in Santiago de Chile in 1975, Rivas studied at Pontificia Universidad Católica in Chile and earned his master’s degree in fine arts from the University of Notre Dame. His work has been featured in several group shows and gallery exhibitions, including most recently Abre-alas 2007 in Rio de Janeiro, Feedback 2007 in Santiago, Conversions in Arlington, VA, and Phantom Floor in Washington, D.C.
- 2007
- Left to my Own Devices, Douz and Mille, Washington, D.C.
- Hache diez menos el diez por ciento (H - 10%), Galería H-10, Valparaíso, Chile
- Laboratorio Salvador 1255, Galería de la Escuela de Arte UNIACC, Santiago, Chile
- 2006
- Unobtrusive, Special Program, Scope Miami (International Art Fair), Miami, FL
- 2005
- Museum Vanity (MFA thesis show), Snite Museum of Art, University of Notre Dame, IN
- 2004
- Peeling, Bond Hall Gallery, School of Architecture, University of Notre Dame, IN
- 2001
- Zugspitze 2964 mt., Múltiple_La Galería, Santiago, Chile
- 1999
- Ultima Cena, BFA Thesis Show, School of Art, Pontificia Universidad Católica, Santiago, Chile
Group Shows
- 2007
- Boyscraft, Haifa Museum of Art, Haifa, Israel
- Sonotube Forms, Contemporary Art and Transportation, Santa Barbara Contemporary Arts Forum, Santa Barbara, CA, USA.
- Scope Basel, at Douz & Mille (International art fair), Basel, Switzerland
- ArteBA, (International art fair), Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Directions: DC Contemporary Latino Art, Cultural Institute of Mexico, Washington D.C.
- Feedback 2007, Centro Cultural Matucana 100, Santiago, Chile
- Abre-alas 2007, Galería A Gentil Carioca, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
- Scope New York, at Douz and Mille, (International art fair) New York, NY
- 2006
- Alegoría barroca en el arte contemporáneo, curators Alfons Hug and Francisco Brugnoli curators, Museo de Arte Contemporáneo, Santiago, Chile
- Conversions, WPA/Corcoran juried show, The Ellipse Arts Center, Arlington, VA
- The Phantom Floor, curator Lea-Ann Bigelow, Sister Regina Gallery, The Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C.
- 2005
- Outstanding Student Achievement in Sculpture Award, Grounds for Sculpture, Hamilton, NJ
- Expecta, Galería Animal, Santiago, Chile
- 2004
- Lobby Level, Christel DeHann Fine Arts Center, University of Indianapolis, IN
- 2003
- Sculptural Memory, Lubeznik Center for the Arts, Michigan City, IN
- Regional Juried Drawing Exhibition, Elaine L. Jacob Gallery, Detroit MI
- 2002
- Lost Rabbit, New Faces Show, Riley Hall, University of Notre Dame, IN
- 2000
- Hiperdespacio, Hoffmann’s House (Rodrigo Vergara and José Pablo Diaz), Plaza Diego de Almagro, Santiago, Chile
- 1999
- Untitled (Surveillance Drawings Series), Bienal de Arte Santiago-Paris-Porto Alegre, Galerie Bernanos, Paris, France
- Concurso de Pintura Cosapi, Galería Tomás Andreu, Santiago, Chile
- 1997
- Dibujo a lapiz, Concurso Nacional Arte Joven, Universidad de Valparaiso, Chile
- Escuadra, Bienal de Arte U.C., Centro de Extensión, Pontificia Universidad Católica, Santiago, Chile