Équilibre d'éléphants, 2019

Philippe Berry   Famous Artists

Philippe Berry was born in Paris in 1956. He lives and works in Paris . He studied at ESAG Penninghen, and worked as a children's textile designer.

In 1980, he created posters for the cinema, then theatre sets (Nuit d'ivresse, l'ex-femme de ma vie, cuisine et dépendances, solo, partenaires, un grand cri d'amour …) then in 1984, and in parallel with his activities, he started painting, then devoted himself to sculpture from 1988.

Philippe Berry's work is centered on the exploration of childhood: balloons, teddy bears in rimbambelles, figurines of Indians and cowboys, snowmen, various animals ... Or so many poetic ways of working bronze, his favorite material, which allows him to pursue his research on both volume and color. Philippe Berry describes himself as an artist motivated by joy and desire. He sees his art as a way of shaping the toys he wants or wants to pass on.

Here is what the artist explained to Isabelle Sobelman, on the occasion of a retrospective exhibition of his work in Metz: "I built this bronze universe in relation to Antiquity, but I wanted a break, some colors. I tried resin, but I wasn't satisfied with it (...) for the color, I tried with my foundryman to paint the bronze, it took us a year to perfect a system that would allow it to be polished to an extreme degree..."

Philippe Berry loves the idea that his works can be viewed from different perspectives, that they can be read in multiple ways. Playful, colorful works? Certainly, but also works that reflect on balance, form, and freedom—all attempts to grasp the artistic condition in its entirety.