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In Rubert’s works, we find “joi de vivre,” but also cannibalism, fear and an irony that impregnates all. He permits the spectator to view the outline of a smile as his male character overcomes his apprehension of those women who go beyond the stereotyped femme fatal. His paintings gather up all the fears that masculinity has been shelling out throughout centuries, where the woman appeared not only disqualified, but also mentally ill and hysterical. But, in Gino Rubert’s work, this type of woman dominates the masculine gender, represented by men whose faces seem to belong to another time, another epoque of totemic and dominant masculinity, which we had supposed was extinguished, but in no way surpassed. Men appear absorbed, devoured, thrown out by feminine strength and sexuality.
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Gino Rubert – Tamara Villoslada
“I believe that most of my works refer to the conflicts, projections, dependencies and mirror-like experiences that occur inside of the belly of the world of lovers. There’s also a second layer of content there that, often, arises from that strange state of nature that makes every human a sort of mixture of masculine and feminine.”
—Gino Rubert
In Rubert’s works, we find “joi de vivre,” but also cannibalism, fear and an irony that impregnates all. He permits the spectator to view the outline of a smile as his male character overcomes his apprehension of those women who go beyond the stereotyped femme fatal. His paintings gather up all the fears that masculinity has been shelling out throughout centuries, where the woman appeared not only disqualified, but also mentally ill and hysterical. But, in Gino Rubert’s work, this type of woman dominates the masculine gender, represented by men whose faces seem to belong to another time, another epoque of totemic and dominant masculinity, which we had supposed was extinguished, but in no way surpassed. Men appear absorbed, devoured, thrown out by feminine strength and sexuality. They are shown as unable to deal with reality and stunned by the events at hand while simultaneously animalized and hyper-sexualized. In this sense, the winks to the spectator are of a subtle and intelligent ambiguity. It is impossible to frame Rubert within the context of some predetermined theoretical current. On the other hand, it is undeniable that Gino Rubert, half Mexican and half Catalan, can be seen as a peculiar, prodigal son of European surrealism and Latin-American Magical-Realism.
