rob grad
"Big Dreams"
"Meant for More"
"Progress"
"Rootless Tree"
"Swimming in the Sea of Ideas"
"The Game is Rigged - In Your Favor"
"There's a Lot to Learn From a Flower"
"The Sun is Coming"
"The Top of the World"
"When Things Come Together"
Rob Grad is known for his introspective yet bold 3D collages, sculptures, writing and music. His heavily layered visuals contrast photographic vignettes of natural environments with urban influenced drawing, painting and his words–an aesthetic largely shaped from his two decades living in Venice Beach, CA. Grad’s work addresses the existential issues of desire, fulfillment, and developing a sense of internal freedom in a society inundated by technology, social media and politics. His new work is increasingly influenced by his early career as a musician, when he was signed to RCA records and appeared on MTV not long after graduating high school. He has shown in museums, galleries and art fairs from Basel to Miami, and Los Angeles. His exhibitions include the Museum of Art and History in Lancaster, CA, Torrance Art Museum, CA, Haute Photographie in Rotterdam, and the Griffin Museum of Photography in Boston. He has large scale commissioned works installed on both coasts, and his work is held in private collections. He also gave a TEDx Talk in Culver City, CA and participated in a global video project for TikTok China. Grad is a Southern California native, and lives in Los Angeles.
For the past 30 years, my work in multiple mediums has explored the existential concepts of desire and fulfillment in a rapidly changing and increasingly fast-moving world. My current work combines photography, painting, drawing and 3D collage, integrating references from my early career in music, to create a poetic media experience.
My family spent many of my childhood summers in the desert. It was hot, but also inexpensive, and close to home. Those trips were the rare times the tumult in our house subsided. I fell in love with quiet, expansive landscapes as a refuge for clarity and comfort.
Some years ago I also worked with a shaman who taught me about the reverence Native Americans have for our environment, including some rituals meant to cleanse the spirit. I’ve had many insights sitting alone in panoramic vistas.
My work contrasts vignettes of various landscapes, with references to graffiti and street art, symbolizing urban life, and our desire to make a “mark” on the world, with the thirst for a connection with the divine. Much of my work draws inspiration from my poetry.
Each physical artwork is three dimensional, and begins with photographs taken in my travels. I paint intuitive shapes on paper, and collage them together, before digitally outlining them. Then wood panels are printed with the photographs and laser cut before being physically layered on top of each other. I then put on finishing touches with charcoal, oil stick and acrylic paint.
I plan to release a book of poems with the artwork in later 2023.
~ Rob Grad