“Jean-Jacques Porret is the conductor of a ballet in bronze. Like the classical dance technique, Porret’s surreal sculptures transcend the mere human form they represent, and instead draw the viewer in with their delicate expressionism, rhythmic movement, and abstract sensuality.

To categorize Jean-Jacques’ work as figurative or abstract is moot. Though figurative in practice, the work is never about the figure, but the emotions and ideas shared by the human race, expressed in the tension of his fluid curves and precarious balance. Though abstract in nature, the recognizable form and innate humanity residing within each piece is impossible to ignore. Thus, we are given a case study in restraint, with the artist utilizing the best aspects of each genre without clouding his final result, creating a self-styled harmony Porret simply describes as “rhythm in space.”

The ability to do this in any material is impressive, in bronze, sublime. Only in using the intense processes of the lost-wax technique is Jean-Jacques able to carry out his poetic experiments, the outcome a testimonial to one of nature’s most hard and brittle elements elevated to flowing, enigmatic forms at the hands of man.

Over time, Porret’s work has only become more dramatic in its simplicity, confidence undulating from the figure-shapes, sure of themselves. While his earlier work is more fleshed out, bringing to mind sculptures such as Matisse and Moore and their focus on abstract figures positioned in space and time, it is in Jean-Jacques’ progression that he achieves a true rhythm, with the motion, and emotion, at the core.

As Porret’s experimentation with his iconoclastic style moves forward, the outcomes will undoubtedly continue to serve as a reflection of our collective and personal experiences, possibly changing in shape, but never in sensibility. We can only hope that Jean-Jacques will continue to provide such a beautiful lens through which we can view the fragments of our own humanity.”

(Jason Myers, Curator, Artist and Galleries owner)