Rabuzin was born in the village Kjuc, near Novi Marof, Croatia. He trained as a carpenter and cabinet maker in Zagreb and by 1950 became a foreman in a furniture factory in Novi Marof. During this time he was spending his free time creating drawings and paintings of his native country site. By 1956 his works were shown in his first one-man show in his village. In 1958, Rabuzin won first prize at the Federal Exhibition of Yugoslav Amateur Painters at Zagreb. His second one-man show was held at the Gallery of Naïve Art in Zagreb. This marked the start of his incredibly productive career and the beginning of his most original style in naïve art. Because of his growing success, Rabuzin was able to quit his job at the furniture factory in 1963 and devote himself full-time to painting. In 1969 he was awarded the Henri Rousseau prize in Bratislava. Since then his works have been shown in many important exhibitions in his own country, as well as throughout the world. Jaro Art Galleries, New York featured a major One-man exhibition of Rabuzin’s work in 1981. The show was a complete sell-out.

Rabuzin works are known for his pleasing, most of the time pastel and sometimes bright colors. Typical subjects are landscapes with free flowing puffy clouds, small villages, hills and oversized colorful flowers.

I had the pleasure and privilege to meet and get to know this genius of an artist, who comes around only once in a lifetime.

We, at Jaro Fine Arts, are very saddened by the news that Ivan Rabuzin passed away on December 18, 2008. He will be forever remembered, not only as a great artist, but as a great human being and a friend.

Jaro Parizek