Rob's primary interest is color, and its ability to express and influence emotions. In recent years, Rob has become increasingly interested in expressing questions about the feeling of being human and what we’re supposed to be doing with our short time here.
Here's what Rob has done in some of that time...
Rob was born in 1974 in Downey, California. During childhood walks with his father, he fell in love with Kent Twitchell’s iconic murals in Downtown L.A. His father worked just one block from Kent’s mural of Ed Ruscha, the iconic Californian artist who would later influence Rob's work.
1990-2000: Directly out of high school, Rob started a mural company with close friend Paul Wallace, his first creative peer. Rob learned on the job from Wallace, and painted murals for ten years.
A pivotal moment happened in Rob's late twenties, when he was fortunate enough to discover a wonderful watercolor instructor at Long Beach City College. With his teacher's encouragement, Rob began to pursue a career as a studio artist. To support himself, Rob worked a series of day jobs while painting at night.
2003: Rob's first solo show in South Pasadena. Sales from the show allowed him to quit his day job. In rapid succession, Rob began exhibiting in Santa Monica, Santa Barbara, and San Francisco.
2008: Rob moved to The Brewery Arts Complex in downtown LA, a community of 300 artists living in the former Pabst Blue Ribbon factory. One of The Brewery’s iconic long-time residents, printmaker Dave Lefner, became his second great creative peer.
"My growth as an artist increased exponentially with each year working next to Dave's studio." Rob explained.
Rob's nine years spent at The Brewery served as a great substitute for the formal education he happened to miss. His days were consumed by painting and reading art books; and nights were filled with gallery and museum shows, and dinners with artists and curators. Rob fell in love with the works of Ed Ruscha, Wayne Thiebaud, and Robert Bechtle, as well as Charles Arnoldi, Corita Kent, Eva Hesse, and John Baldessari. During this time, Rob starts finding his own voice as an artist.
2015: Rob began his Helen series. Filmmakers Ric and Jen Serena began filming a documentary, which would become My Indiana Muse.
2018: My Indiana Muse was released. It screened at over 20 film festivals and won 10 awards, including Best Short Film/Documentary at the Beverly Hills Film Festival and NYC Independent Film Festival.
2022: Rob started work on the Oxford 12 series, a series of larger-than-life nudes based in Oxford, Mississippi. Rob describes the series as “the most honest look at the most important subject." Due the size of the works, viewers are faced with the reality of what people really look like, and their innate value, rather than a conventional or predictable, youthful ideal.
Today: Rob currently resides in sunny Phoenix.