Today we’d like to introduce you to Robin Howard.
Hi Robin, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Growing up in rural Indiana, I was heavily influenced by the Outsider artists of the South and Midwest. My parents were both makers, so luckily, I had a steady supply of scraps and access to tools. I began creating assemblages when I was five because I hadn’t learned to write yet, and I wanted to tell stories. I remember feeling frustrated with the slow drip of the learning process; I had a vast imagination, but for a while, the only way I could communicate what I saw was through shapes and symbols. Not much has changed except I have better tools; I did become a non-fiction writer, but I still prefer to tell stories through symbols.
Today, when I create, I want to be personally absent from my work; my goal is to create art that surprises and delights people, that transports them out of the mundane for a brief moment. I most enjoy working with old materials that people have handled daily for decades and have an unspoken history of their own. My favorite way to show my work these days is in public settings, like hotels, where many people can have brief, casual encounters with memorable, fanciful, or thought-provoking art. Being surprised visually is fun, especially when the materials are beautiful and the intention is uplifting. That’s the energy I want to put into the world.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It took me a long time to accept that an artist’s life involves patience and iteration. Rarely do I get a work right the first time, which can be frustrating (and expensive.) Sometimes it takes months or years to make a finished work match my vision. It can also take months or years to find the right audience for a work or a body of work. Over time I’ve had to learn to trust my vision, create what gives me joy, and trust the universe to connect it with the right people at the right time.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I’m an assemblage artist, like being a collage artist but in 3D. I use found objects sometimes, but most of the time, I sketch something from a dream or from one of the stories I used to tell myself when I was little, then collect the materials I need to make it come to life. Most of my work is creating artifacts from imaginary worlds. I’ve always used antique nature journals, especially antique birding guides. Right now, I’m also working with colorful antique chapati rolling pins, handmade beads, vintage loom spindles, and antique coins with bird motifs. I am telling my stories through these works, but in a way that lets the viewer create their own adventure.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.robinhowardart.com
- Instagram: @robinhowardart
Image Credits
Robin Howard
