10 May Robert De Niro Sr. From Shadow to Light
Author : Fabrice Salvadori.
As a key player in the cultural exchange between the large Russia and the small Principality, Vladimir Semenikhin, Honorary Consul of Kazakhstan in Monaco, reveals his true passion for art holds roots in the creation of his Foundation “Ekaterina,” founded in Moscow in 2002.
Robert De Niro, Sr. was a rounded artist who developed his talents through sculpture, photography, and painting, in particular. Similar to a post-war abstract expressionist, he was very successful at the time when his art dazzled in the same way as Jackson Pollock. But this success did not last. The arrival of pop art in the sixties carried everything in its wake. His lack of recognition led him to leave the United States and move to France for a few years to enrich his life as an artist. His style gradually moved away from abstraction towards a more realistic representation.
A figurative style
As impressions of modernity, his compositions were filled with rich references to the New York post-war style and hexagonal art. His portraits and nudity works were influenced by Matisse. His countrysides had touches of post-Fauve childhood, and his works of nature contained traces of vanity, posing the eternal question of the fragility of human existence, notably in Still Life, which he painted in 1958. The roundness of shapes, the simplicity of lines, and the explosion of colors brought strong meaning to his figurative style. On his canvas, it is the painting that is mainly exhibited. The history of art is reassembled with a lively and modern feel.
A delicate painting
This talented and unsung artist died in 1993 at the age of 71, leaving behind his works and his story. But his name was revived upon the public surfacing of his famous son. In fact, Remembering the Artist Robert De Niro, Sr. retraces the life of this delicate painting with which the actor had a deep connection. The project was mainly intended to allow the youngest children of the family to establish a deeper connection with a great-grandfather about whom they did not know too much about. This vibrant homage turned out attracting more viewers than anyone could have imagined. Next June on HBO, intimacy and the introspective character in this testamentary work will be available for all audiences to enjoy. All the complexity of the personality of Robert De Niro, Sr. is revealed within this work. Nothing is kept secret. We discover a man who, after accepting his homosexuality, left his wife and three-year-old son. We can still see the detached relationship between a father and his adult son. Putting on the hat of producer with care, the acclaimed international star humbly steps aside to give the main role to his father. To honor him, he organized an exposition of his paintings in a Park City gallery, and took care to preserve his father’s studio so that his children could visit it. The duty of memory proves that the actor has a real attachment to the passing down of many precious memories from the past.