For Chris Roos, every surface is a canvas, and every material is paint. This well-known American artist and sculptor is celebrated for his unconventional approach to art. In addition, Roos works with graphics, jewelry, ceramics, and furniture design. Read more on queens1.one.
Early Beginnings
Chris Roos was born on March 7, 1952, in Queens to a German family. From an early age, he engaged with art, as his mother created stage and dance decorations. He pursued his education at New York’s School of Visual Arts, where he began honing his skills as an artist. In the 1970s, a movement in the visual arts aimed to showcase the creative process in action, and Roos, inspired by this trend, moved beyond paper and paint as his primary means of expression.
His first sculpture series was inspired by discarded wood found near his studio. Using reclaimed wood, he would carve, paint, and shape it, imbuing the material with depth and metaphor. Reused surfaces of various forms and sizes became his favorite medium.
The New York Period
Between 1972 and 1996, Chris worked out of a New York studio. Early in his career, he took on commercial projects for various New York publications and department stores. Roos stood out among sculptors for his ability to reveal the potential in structure, materials, and color. He seamlessly blended the dimensions of sculpture and painting, combining surfaces like paper, wood, and fabric and blurring the lines between abstraction and representation.
The sculptor enjoyed portraying the contrast of light—both in motion and at rest. Roos showcased his mastery over the mysteries of time and space through various objects. When he began his artistic experiments, the focus was on the process itself, not just the finished artwork.
In the 1980s, Roos began collaborating with Cynthia Lennon, a visual artist and the first wife of musician John Lennon. Together, they worked on a mural for Atlanta. Roos also developed the ARTWEAR brand with his friend Robert Lee Morris, an American jewelry designer, and began creating jewelry himself.
Work in Europe
In 1996, Roos closed his New York studio and moved to central Milan, where he worked out of two large warehouses with a courtyard. This expanded space allowed him to work on larger sculptures and installations.
In Milan, Roos began experimenting with ceramics and large metal sculptures. He created illustrations for Italian Vogue and occasionally took on design assignments in Berlin, Seoul, and Tokyo. Roos also worked on large-scale European sculptures and installations and even designed furniture for the Italian brand Cappellini, as well as some grand architectural installations. In the late 1990s, he opened a studio in Paris in an industrial building with a metal frame.
Having established a strong reputation in the art world, Roos regularly receives commissions from around the globe. He also crafts jewelry for collectors and designers using materials like ebony, brass, silver, and gold. His jewelry pieces resemble refined sculptures, often employing various techniques to achieve the final look. Roos specializes in working with metal, plaster, and wood. Additionally, he uses clay to create unique colors, continuing to innovate and expand his artistic expressions.