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Simon Raab
Born 1952
Lives and works in Santa Barbara, USA
www.parleau.com
Simon Raab works in a medium he calls “Parleau” whose etymology is
French for 'through the water.' Just for fun and to make a satirical point
about artist branding, Raab trademarked the name and patented the
method. Multiple layers of coloured polymers are applied to stainless steel
and aluminum and then "crushed" or sculpted to give the appearance of
an image just under the surface of water. The art is created as either a wall-
mounted painting with embedded frames, or as a freestanding volumetric
sculpture. Raab works with brilliant colors, fi gurative abstractions, and most
often is motivated by some underlying philosophical question or belief.

Raab identifi es with the symbolism of the grenade as a symbol of disruptive
ideas and the agents of change from whence they come. They have the
ability to destroy and disrupt and expose suppressed ideas, yet they are
egg-like, bearing offspring, activated and inspired by the hand of man,
defensive, aggressive, working in the name of good and evil, dangerous
and inviting. New and innovative ideas leave the shrapnel of suspicion in
your mind. The grenade is the perfect symbol for creative destruction and
aligns well with the Parleau medium. Parleau enhances the images on
metal by a sculpting and crushing step, partially destroying after creating
and generating a refreshing and dynamic visual perspective. Life is
added to images, activated by life’s essence and the cycle of creation
and destruction.

Raab began as an artist, became a scientist and engineer and has now
returned to being an artist. This background provided him with a deep
insight into materials and surface properties, which he brought to bear
on his art. The secret processes developed in Parleau were only possible
because of his scientifi c background. It is a myth that the creative impulses
and process in the sciences are different than those in the arts. They have
many similarities, in that they are emotional, inspired, magical, technical,
and are often born of frustration.
SIMON RAAB was born in Toulouse, France, grew up in Canada and now lives in
Santa Barbara, USA. He has exhibited in a number of group shows including; Pull
the Pin, Mannheim, Germany, 2012/2013, Crushed, Toronto, Canada (2012),
Vibrations, Dresden, Germany, (2012), Dichtung und Wahrheit, Frankfurt am Main,
Germany (2012), Surface Tension, Seoul, South Korea (2012), Parleau 2007-2011,
Munich, Germany (2011), From Behind These Bars, Mannheim, Germany (2011),
Complexhibition, Mannheim, Germany (2011), From Behind These Bars, Vienna,
Austria (2011), Attraverso l‘acqua - Parleau, Massa, Italy (2011), What comes
together must come apart, Amsterdam, The Netherlands (2010), Attraverso l'acqua
- Parleau, Lucca, Italy (2010), Also too late for shame, Mannheim, Germany (2010),
The Sun Does Set, London, UK (2010) and New Objects - Parleau, Mannheim,
Germany (2009).

Above: Complexifi cation, 2011, Polymers and
Aluminium on Granite base.
h: 80cm w: 33cm d: 30cm, Private Collection.
Right: Complexhilation, 2011, Polymers and Aluminium
on shell stone base.
h: 86cm w: 46cm d: 53cm, Private Collection.

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