Robert Swedroe: New Works in New Media

In 2010 Contessa Gallery organized a highly successful one-man exhibition by the acclaimed artist and renowned architect Robert Swedroe. Swedroe's Narrative Assemblages and Cyber Series collages struck a chord with many collectors as the epitome of the modern collage technique. Clean lines, use of intricate geometry and structure, as well as vibrant blazing color are appealing from an aesthetic and intellectual point of view. The newest exhibition at Contessa Gallery will showcase the extensive new body of work from 2011 by this prolific and widely collected artist.

Collage as artistic medium is the embodiment of the contemporary artistic language. It has played a vital role in almost every phase of Modernism and many masters of the 20th century such as Georges Braque, Pablo Picasso, Max Ernst, and Marcel Duchamp have tried their hand at this art form. Collage engages us with an immediacy that is distinct from other media. The artist confronts us with a vision of the world that is literally constructed from the physical context of his/her own experience. Found images and objects function as symbols of both individual and collective experience. The combination of simplicity and complexity of the collage process adds to the sense of spontaneity and, simultaneously, carefully planned-out order and symmetry.  

Robert Swedroe is a bona fide master of the collage genre. He emerged upon the art scene in the 1960's with eight consecutive one-man exhibitions from Miami to New York, while also developing his career as an architect. In 2006, with his architectural legacy secured, he returned to creating art with a renewed passion and a contemporary point of view. The new body of work utilizes new components such as stainless steel, mirrors, or glass samples, while also incorporating cyber square elements from the previous series. There are several new distinct types of works which will be on view at Contessa Gallery. The "Reflection/Mirror" series serves as somewhat of a bridge between Swedroe's cyber series collages and his new creations, while the "Tube" series and the "Container" series are a step in an entirely different direction. A few works are reminiscent of Louise Nevelson's oeuvre in their use of stark black or white colors and geometric shapes. However all new works are fully Swedroe in their masterful use of innovative materials and explosive colors.

Contessa Gallery has shown Robert Swedroe's works at major art fairs throughout the United States, each time with great success. We are proud to display Swedroe's newest works, which juxtapose his wordly experience and skillful technique with a youthful and relevant point of view.

For information regarding Robert Swedroe's works please contact Steve Hartman at 216.382.7800