Feb 8, 20182 min read

RHEBIS: A Robert Walker Retrospective at Jason Vass

RHEBIS, Robert Walker Retrospective at Jason Vass Gallery; Photo Credit Kristine Schomaker

RHEBIS: A Robert Walker Retrospective

through February 17 Jason Vass Gallery, Los Angeles

By Patrick Quinn There is quite a lot to like in the Robert Walker retrospective currently showing at the Jason Vass Gallery. Though “RHEBIS” is called a retrospective, most of the work was done in the last fifteen years. Created in a variety of media, the work is unified by the artist’s intoxicating use of color. Even black and white pieces manage to be colorful, whether they’re done with ink, acrylic & resin on wood such as with Phnom Penh Suite #11, or using mixed media such as in Tweedledum. On first viewing, Daphlux is so alive in its use of black, white and red, it seems to breath

There are a lot of adjectives one could use for a quick description of the artist’s work: animated, playful, expansive, vivid, even psychedelic. One flashback these pieces do conjure up is the old NBC logo with the multi-hued peacock. Works like E-buse, Keylogger, and Safeweb are certainly “broadcast in living color”.

Reflecting the artist’s long interest in meditation is the calming Bhudda Chair #14. In contrast is the textured starburst of Phnom Penh Suite #7 or the organized chaos of Vertnig and Moodette.

Robert Walker was born in Los Angeles and continues to live and work in L.A. He has a long history of social activism in the local artist community. In 1986, he pioneered a program for artists with Aids and HIV. That sort of passion and commitment is apparent in his work.

RHEBIS runs through February 17 and is well worth seeing.