From June 14 to September 14, 2023, artist Jeff Robb, following stops in London and Milan, presents "Beyond Nature" in the Italian capital, inside the iconic location of Rocco Forte Hotels.

A blend of the historical and the contemporary, the exhibition "Beyond Nature," created in collaboration with the Cris Contini Contemporary gallery, encourages a dialogue between Art and Nature to call attention to the preservation of our ecosystem.

"Beyond Nature" consists of twelve works: six still lifes with a floral theme and five flowers from the Rorschach flower series. The latter is inspired by the famous ink blots of the psychiatrist Herman Rorschach: paper folded while the ink is still wet creates a bilaterally symmetrical image, which the viewer is invited to observe and declare which drawing he sees within it. 

Similarly, the works in the Rorschach series, are more than just flowers: the petals become draperies or waterfalls, butterflies or supernatural creatures while the pistils become agile dancers. 

The artist - a scholar of botany and known for his use of the lenticular technique - from the analysis of hundreds of flowers, processes 3D images that he then sculpts digitally with an interplay of light and form, with surrealist flair and scientific information that distinguish him. 

The artistic-naturalistic journey concludes with the sculpture Affinity2022: a majestic female body in mirrored stainless steel, surprising the visitor inside the Secret Garden of the Hotel de Russie, designed by architect Valadier in the 19th century, which has always been a green oasis in the heart of the Eternal City. 

The geometric facets of the sculpture reflect their surroundings, changing depending on the perspective from which the installation is viewed, hypnotically capturing and refracting the colors of the striking garden.

Hotel de Russie's Bar Stravinsky, for the occasion, also incorporates inspiration from the scents of nature dedicating the cocktail "Beyond Nature" to the work of the Artist. From the cold extract of petals of dried jasmine, with the addition of citrus fruits such as lime and lemon, drops of agave syrup and lychee essence, combined with vodka, comes a cocktail that will accompany the duration of the exhibition and the summer period in Rome.

Indeed, in nature, Robb's muse, the choice of the Hotel de Russie as the stage for this new exhibition is, as the artist says,  ‘from the surprise and emotion I felt when I visited, for the first time, the Secret Garden. A magical place in which elements of neoclassical architecture and a rich botanical heritage transport the guest to a fantasy that invites reflection and calm. I wished to bring nature inside the hotel through my works. My flowers accompany the visitor on a journey of discovery of what lies hidden behind a flower'.