Maria Rivans is a contemporary artist, best known for her bright and eclectic collages. Maria Rivans’ art combines vintage ephemera and vivid, often humorous, imagery. Rivans’ fresh approach to collage maintains a dialogue with cultures and imagery of the past, whilst using the style to reflect the complex world we live in.
Maria Rivans is a contemporary artist, best known for her bright and eclectic collages. Maria Rivans’ art combines vintage ephemera and vivid, often humorous, imagery. Rivans’ fresh approach to collage maintains a dialogue with cultures and imagery of the past, whilst using the style to reflect the complex world we live in.
Rivans studied 3D design at the University of Brighton, the city she lives and works in today and adores. She has a wide range of influences, including the Dada movement, David Hockney, Hieronymus Bosch, Jeff Koons, Frida Kahlo, Robert Rauschenberg, Richard Hamilton, and The Brit Art Movement. She also draws inspiration from outside of visual art, looking to music, film, and fashion in defining her aesthetic. Rivans’ vintage imagery is sourced from second-hand shops, car boot sales, and charity shops. Rivans’ collection of images, which numbers in the thousands, were printed between 1890 and 1970. By collaging and intertwining different film and TV genres, Rivans creates tales and shows how the fragmented and complex world we inhabit can be pieced back together. Rivans has exhibited in both solo and group shows across the UK and Europe, as well as Hong Kong, Korea, and New York. In 2015, her artwork 'Carina' was the face of Scoop International Fashion Show at the Saatchi Gallery, and 'Scarlett' headed Nordea Private Banking's campaign at Stockholm Affordable Art Fair. Rivans' artwork has been featured in The Times newspaper and in 2018 one of her artworks was selected for the Royal Academy’s 250th Summer Exhibition.
Rivans spends months carefully deliberating and deciding the layout and design of her intricate and highly detailed artworks.
We love the precision the artist applies to collating and assembling her compositions in order to find the perfect imagery to piece together each surreal artwork.
Rivans’ studio in Brighton was originally built as a small cinema in 1911, making it a kooky and special place to work.
Rivans' notable series have included landscapes, pin-ups, film stills, and 3D box collages.
Rivans' pin-up portrait ‘Lady Valentina’ was used as the campaign image for both the London and Milan affordable art fairs in 2014, seeing her image displayed across both cities.
ARTIST SPOTLIGHT
Featured In:
A DAY IN THE LIFE OF MARIA RIVANS Maria Rivans is a contemporary British artist, known for her scrapbook-style collage aesthetic. A mash-up of Surrealism meets Pop-Art, Rivans’ work re-appropriates vintage ephemera to create dreamy realms, which transport the viewer into fantastical worlds of the imaginary, each one suffused with vivid colour, arresting imagery, intricate detail, and finished with a dusting of subtle humour. Here, we spend a day in the life of Maria Rivans, from morning meditation to beach walks. Maria Rivans in her studio MY ALARM GOES OFF… I meditate, usually for an hour. Then I will ...
