By Angela Romeo
The Southern California beach life is a far cry from the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers. Robin Przybysz has more than adapted to the change. She embodies the healthy life style and sun kissed look that epitomizes life on the coast.
Born in Cincinnati, Ohio, Robin grew up in a family that valued the arts. It was no surprise to them that Robin accepted the challenge of a career in the arts. She received her undergraduate degree in Fine Arts/Art Education from the University of Cincinnati in 1986, and returned in 1991 to serve as an Adjunct Professor for the Art Education Department. She spent the next three decades exhibiting her work domestically and abroad. Simultaneously Robing taught art to children, Kprep-12. In 2016 she received her MFA degree from Azusa Pacific University with an emphasis on sculpture installation.
Using techniques born from the ancient arts of basketry and weaving, Robin creates provocative pieces. What makes the work so strong and poignant is the familiarity of the material. “I manipulate the materials into sculptures of linen, plaster casts, and wood silhouettes. When constructing my linen sculptures, I tightly wrap waxed linen around a jute core which makes a strong yet flexible line, much like the consistency of wire, which I can bend and form into the structure I desire. I, then, stitch it in place and continue this method of coiling until I reach the desired outcome,” noted Robin.
For some this multi-disciplinary approach defies traditional notions of “fine art.” For others it is a breath of fresh air on the contemporary art scene. Bridging the mythical gap of art vs. craft, Robin has gained international acclaim for her efforts. “I was part of a textile exhibition last spring in the Netherlands. In March, my work will be shown in Morocco with seven other artists for a textile convergence. I will return to Morocco for the month of June for an artist residency.”
Before she leaves for her international shows, Robin’s latest installation will open at Colliding Worlds Fine Art Gallery on January 13. Conversations about the Feminine, continues the dialogue that resonates throughout her work – the experiences of womanhood and transformation.
“I have always seen my work as a personal narrative of overcoming abuse, triumphing, and starting renewed with an unimpaired immaculate heart. I have an ongoing conversation about the feminine: the experiences of womanhood and transformation embodied by the female form.” The work is a reflection of her personal journey, but like her technique, is a universal journey. The struggle to transform, adapt and grow is part of the human experience. Whether change is precipitated by circumstance, choice or chance, is universal. Robin’s work is the universal message of hope.
Excavations of the Immaculate Heart installed in 2016 brought the message of transformation to the conversation of femininity, strength and hope. The upcoming installation continues the discussion. The metamorphosis of what can be in embodied in these works can only be described as public display of affirmation and hope.
Robin continued, “The skills I perform and the designs I fashion in my artwork become y symbolic language. For me, as a process artist, it is the physical act of drawing, burning or sculpting lines and forms that I find myself in a an introspective trance. It allows me to have renewal and liberation from the oppression of childhood trauma by redirecting my own path in restructuring the cellular makeup of the story of my life; it declares hope, persistence and determination.”
The power of art can never be understated. But power without truth is hollow. The power, truth and the art of Robin Przybysz is an experience and the start of a one’s own internal dialogue of realization and hope.
Conversations About the Feminine opens at 5 pm on January 13 at Colliding Worlds Fine Art Gallery, 68-895 Perez Rd, Suite I 13, Cathedral City. The for more information about Robin visit www.artintexture.com or robinprzybysz.com
