45 + Anniversary Exhibition Series: Part I (The Viewing
Room)

On the auspicious occasion marking over forty-five years as a contemporary art venue in Colorado, Robischon Gallery is pleased to present “45 +,” an anniversary exhibition series beginning with “PART I” in November of 2022, followed by “PART II,” opening in February of 2023.  The distinctive tandem presentations offer a unique glimpse into the broader spectrum of numerous noteworthy Robischon Gallery exhibitions. While touching upon a specific selection of the gallery’s far-reaching dialogues within art, the series symbolically features new and memorable archived artworks by several gallery artists in celebration of all of the exemplary artists the gallery has presented over its many decades-long presence in Colorado. “PART I” highlights the following twenty-nine regional, national, and internationally recognized artists in a blend of tangential or thematic modes of cross-cultural/political histories, symbiotic human relationships with Nature in form or narrative, as well as an exaltation of Nature’s beauty and issues of environmentalism.

Since its inception in 1976, Robischon Gallery has been producing museum-level contemporary art exhibitions for its audiences in Colorado and beyond. Embracing the ongoing pluralism in art, the exhibitions and artists represented and regularly exhibited, purposefully address a continuum of stylistic and contextual concerns, allowing for a diverse range of voices. Robischon Gallery’s expansive exhibition program maintains a commitment to burgeoning and mid-career artists of integrity and vision, while continuously broadening its list of historically significant artists shown to include Robert Motherwell, Louise Bourgeois, Yayoi Kusama, Joan Mitchell, Richard Serra, and Christo, among many others. Robischon Gallery’s represented and exhibited artists of influence such as Judy Pfaff, Kiki Smith, Ann Hamilton, Enrique Martínez Celaya, John Buck, and Bernar Venet reaffirm the gallery’s vision to foster thought-provoking and meaningful progressions in contemporary art in a variety of art-making practices. The gallery has long been recognized for premiering important artists and exhibiting challenging forms of creative expression, as it continues to set bold new standards for contemporary art in the Mountain States region.

At this celebratory time, Robischon Gallery, in gratitude, wishes to offer its heartfelt acknowledgement of all of its artists’ remarkable inventiveness, dedication in the studio and loyalty to the gallery. Without the artists leading the way, there would be no story to tell, no inspiration, and assuredly, no gallery over all these years. In concert, the gallery also wishes to sincerely recognize the importance of those individuals who have chosen to generously support the artists and the gallery – whether it be private collectors, museum directors and curators, art advisors, art consultants, architects and the many colleagues in Denver, across the country and overseas, as well as each responsive exhibition visitor. Robischon Gallery owes its long presence in Denver to this exceptional patronage. It is also important to note those very special art writers who have made it their mission to enhance the local art community’s experience of art. Though the gallery has enjoyed coverage elsewhere, it counts itself as extremely fortunate to have been gifted, for the artists’ sake, a great deal of dedicated coverage in Denver since its earliest days. And finally, but no less important and critical to the gallery’s success, is its hard working, talented staff. To mount complex exhibitions at this scale, keeping each of the artworks safe, while being accessible to all those who cross the gallery’s threshold, virtually or in person, requires knowledge, skill, patience and a receptive attitude.

The artists on view and all acknowledged above ignite the true spirit of Robischon Gallery.  At its core, this multi-decade anniversary series celebration, “PART I,” and the upcoming “PART II,” is a shared endeavor in devoted service of the importance and power of ART.  

YU FAN

“Yu Fan’s Hello, a faceless, waving Mao-like figure reflects an exuberant time when artists were able to play with cultural, commercial, and social motifs. Mr. W personifies a figure from Goethe’s ‘The Sorrows of Young Werther” demonstrating Yu Fan’s studies of different topics which are dialogues and exchanges between Chinese and other cultures throughout history. They express Yu's search for his own place to stand between East and West. The topics his works touch on are contemporary and his conceptions are modern and youthful. In terms of his sculptural language, he has discarded the restricted Western way of imitating reality. He uses his own language by finding a way of simplifying form and structure and trying to make his images more symbolic yet not too abstract."- Curator Feng Boyi   

ZHANG XIAOGANG

“At the end of the 1980s and early 90s, the socio-political environment in China had changed drastically, and this reality shook me up severely. There was a great shift in my mindset. Before this, my paintings had romantic and dream-like themes. After the second half of 1989, I began a huge, soul-searching introspection. It seemed as though there were lots of things I couldn’t escape. At that time. I had a strong feeling we were repeating history. My artwork took on a sense of the absurd, set within a fictional space, emphasizing the symbolism of intention. I started to pay attention to the history, culture and aesthetics behind pictures and distilled these things into my own artistic language. Through old pictures, I was able to learn about the ideas of traditional Chinese aesthetics, including how people delighted in the process of taking and developing film. They also went to great lengths to beautify the subjects of their pictures, just like how we still are constantly refining history and polishing memories. I also went through my own process of refining old photos—though, my purpose was to reconstruct old memories.”

SHEN XIAOTANG

“Shen Xiaotong’s psychological portraits offer a reflective narration, a self-scrutiny at a time of rapid change. His paintings represent ordinary objects and scenes in daily life, not grandiose themes. Even his large-scale paintings are ethereal and tranquil. This kind of personal experience and emotional expression has stemmed from daily life, as well as the momentary palpitation brought by viewing the paintings, is even more precious after the pandemic. It can touch and comfort every viewer and remind us once again to discover art, take care of ourselves, and cherish life daily.” - the Long Museum 

ZHAO BO

"Zhao Bo has made a number of small works which concentrate on one image, honing-in one idea. These he calls fragments – little segments from the big scene, each one portraying a juxtaposition, an attitude, political slogans, commercial propaganda, etc. They are flashes of life, caught as if illuminated by a strobe light for one frozen instant that leaves an indelible impression." - Chinese Contemporary.com