La main au Pompon

Richard Di Rosa was born in 1963 in Sète, he is a French sculptor. Nicknamed "Buddy" in reference to Buddy Holly, he was with his brother Hervé Di Rosa, Remi Blanchard, François Boisrond and Robert Combas one of the main artisans of the French movement of Free Figuration, a revival of painting in the 1980s, a painting uninhibited borrowing often to the comic, rock and graffiti. He is the only member of the movement to have chosen sculpture as a means of expression.

If at the very beginning of his career this self-taught artist mixed his particular vision with that of his brother, he very quickly created a singular universe. The color, the round and uninhibited forms of his characters testify to an aesthetic proximity with Joan Miró or Max Ernst. African culture, music and animals (his famous chickens in particular) are all themes of inspiration for the artist.

His works can be seen at the Cité de la Musique in Paris and the Paul Valéry Museum in Sète. Exhibited in the United States since 1983, he pursues an international career in Ghana, Belgium, Thailand, Korea, Colombia, the Netherlands... In France, in May 2008, a retrospective retracing these twenty-five years of creations was dedicated to him at the Villa Tamaris in La Seyne-sur-Mer.