Deep At Sea - Process

Renee Robbins, Deep at Sea, 3 color screen print, 2013.

The piece considers the shape of waves and the constantly shifting form of water.

Limited artist edition: of 27.
Dimensions: 11.5 x 11.5”
Materials: 3 color screenprint on paper

This print was made in collaboration with classical composer Seth Boustead.
Listen to the Deep at Sea Companion song by Seth here.

ABOUT: The edition was a collaboration between Spudnik Press, Homeroom Chicago, and Access Contemporary Music. The 2013 Ten x Ten project that pairs composers with visual artists to produce a song and print. There were concerts and exhibitions of the project which included 10 visual artists and 10 composers. The original edition set of 200 with prints and a vinyl record is now sold out. I have a few available from the small artist edition created with the project.

MY PROCESS: I made 5 original paintings/drawings preparing ideas and exploring forms for the project. I often call my works on paper drawings even if I use paint. After I did the originals, I next drew three layers with an old fashion quill pen and brush and ink on transparent film. The films were needed to burn screens to produce the different colors of the screen print. The print has three layers of blue. The edition was printed by hand by Chicago printmakers at Spudnik Press.

The print is available in my webstore here.

STUDIES in gouache and colored pencil

Studies for the larger originals which were made first.

Studies for the larger originals which were made first.

Original paintings in gouache and colored pencil

Hand Painted Films
using a Quill Pen, brush, & Ink

hand drawn film layer 1

hand drawn film layer 2

hand drawn film layer 3

Ten x Ten 2013

Ten x Ten, 2013 Edition

Ten x Ten is a collaboration between visual artists and musicians exploring visual and auditory interaction. By challenging artists to conceptualize their work across media, Ten x Ten asks participants stretch and expand their creative process. Through producing a limited edition compilation and public presentation of the resulting artworks, Ten x Ten documents, celebrates, and promotes Chicago’s artistic community.

Ten x Ten 2013 investigates the relationship between color and sound. Through exploring the underlying concepts of synesthesia, both academically and intuitively, artists and composers have worked together to produce artwork that takes the form of both a fine art print and an original score.  This project is presented by Access Contemporary Music, Homeroom, and Spudnik Press.

Featured print and song collaborations:

Lilli Carre and Michael Miller
Edie Fake and Andrew Tham
Jo Dery and Jude Mathews
Aaron Renier and Brain Baxter
Chad Kouri and Marjorie Rusche
Craig Hansen and Betsy Start
Aaron Maurer and Tim Corpus
Ann Worthing and Amos Gillespie
Angee Lennard and Randall West
Renee Robbins and Seth Boustead

The collection of prints includes an LP with ten unique tracks, a hand-printed folio, and a plastic protective sleeve.

 

Classic Crime album and "Radar"

I had a chance to create a new painting inspired in part by the comb jellyfish. The underlying structure of this painting started with looking at images and videos of the bioluminescent creature that lives in the deep ocean.

This is the same creature that inspired H.R. Giger to create the alien for the alien movies. I think his interpretation is much more menacing than my own. I use my own language of painting to create the otherworldly unseen universe in each original art piece.

As in many of my artworks, some inspirations are nameable in our world and some are completely abstract. However, I think my visual language adds secrets and hidden meanings to these real sources. The viewer can consider if is this real or not. I want viewers to question and look within their knowledge of the universe to see what they can figure out, decode, or even imagine.

I sometimes wonder if it is important for me to name the creatures that inspire my work because I change it so much from the the original source that it is hardly recognizable. I was also inspired by diatoms which are the light blue and purple forms in the night sky or deep ocean. There are many forms in this painting that are invented and do not come from our world. This painting is part of the GLOW series created in 2012-2013 but this new piece was created in 2024

Radar, 14" x 16", acrylic on canvas, 2024, private collection.

The album layout was designed by Graphic Designer Alexander C. Sprungle https://sprungle.co/ He did such a great job with the project and I love the little details he took from my painting and added to the layout here.
My amazing artist friend Justin Henry Miller recommended my artwork for this project. Thank you so much to Justin! Please check out his work as he is an incredible artist based in Missouri and shows frequently here in Chicago at ZG Gallery.

You Can Pick it Up On Radar, 20" x 20", acrylic on canvas, 2013, private collection

How to Be Human

April 28, 2017

“It's been almost five years since The Classic Crime dropped their last full-length album of originals, called Phoenix; and many wondered what they would get from their newest offering… Thankfully, the Classic Crime are still around. And thankfully, they’re still making some of the best music out there. The suitable conclusion that the album arrives at in its final line ("Savior/Save me") serves as an appropriate statement to end such a colorful listening experience.”

Spotify | Apple Music | Bandcamp | Youtube

Video Animation of my painting

 
 

Recurring Motif - Blue Buttons

Recurring Motif - Blue Buttons

This is one of my most beloved inspirational creatures called Blue-Buttons. I wanted to share this painting and etching collection. It shows how I have painted the same creature in several different pieces in different ways. These jellyfish-like creatures are colonies of individual polyps that function as one organism. They are very tiny in scale, hence the name Blue-Buttons. They are very tiny in scale and float across the surface of the ocean.

On the Surface, 12” x12”, acrylic on panel.

Trail of Fireflies: At the Drive-In, 12” x 16”, acrylic on panel,

Blue Buttons, 5” x 7”, etching.

Hydrozoa: Blue-Buttons, 14” x 16”, acrylic on canvas.

 

Simple Pleasures & Silver Linings at [Salonlb.]

[salonlb.] is proud to present a solo exhibition by Chicago-based artist, Renee Robbins titled “Simple Pleasures and Silver Linings: An Unseen Universe”, opening Friday, December 16th, with a special reception from 7-10pm during Bridgeport’s Third Fridays gallery walk.

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