By Rebecca Pikus
Robert Dunahay is a tall, slim man who personifies the beloved Palm trees that he paints! Robert has that quintessential Midwestern presence & personality — a modest man of few words with a tall Henry Fonda, James Stewart, Gary Cooper kind of look. Born in Ohio, he grew up in Denver, Colorado, where he studied art at Metropolitan State College. From there, he moved to New York City — being influenced by Andy Warhol’s book “POPism: The Warhol Sixties”. Robert’s artwork was displayed in an Upper Westside Gallery, but he started his own cabinet-making business to pay the bills — he ended up with clients such as Barbara Streisand & Lauren Bacall! In 1993, anxious to get back to his Art full-time, Robert moved to San Francisco. Robert’s paintings started to take off, with several galleries & numerous distributors; “It was at that point that I realized I didn’t have to be in a major city to be an artist, because I was shipping artwork everywhere.” Lucky for us — because Robert moved to Palm Springs in 2005 and the rest is history! Although Robert is probably most well-known for “The Palm Series”, his other series of paintings — “Rusted Dollar”, “UFO” & “Sea of Humanity” show a different but equally brilliant side of Robert. Primarily working with oils on canvas, Robert explores the iconic symbolism of palm trees in contemporary culture. His unique style and bold use of rich, saturated colors, masterfully combines the classical essence of the palm with the vibrant sensibilities of modern art. Distinguished patrons worldwide collect Dunahay’s work, including the Royal Family Al Thani of Qatar, and Baroness Monica Von Neumann of Switzerland. His colorful paintings frequently get snapped up by celebrities like Pierce Brosnan, Kelsey Grammer, Linda Hamilton, and Ryan Reynolds. Corporate collections include Pepperdine University, The Financial Times, The Packard Foundation, and The W Hotel.
Robert’s work is held in the permanent collections of the Fredrick R. Weisman Museum of Art, the Peninsula Museum of Art, and MOAH, the Museum of Art and History in Lancaster, California. Robert has exhibited at the Palm Springs Art Museum; Peninsula Museum of Art, Belmont, Ca; Fine Art Associates in Honolulu; Skidmore Contemporary Art, Santa Monica; Alexander Mertens Fine Art, Montecito, Ca; & James Trezza Gallery in NYC.
Robert Dunahay lives in Palm Springs, Ca. and is represented by Christian Hohmann Fine Art in Palm Desert, California. www.Christianhohmann.com. Robert’s website is www.robertdunahay.com. He can be contacted by email at Robert@robertdunahay.com
