I get this question a lot, what kind of art do I make. Its a lengthy answer, I suppose. For me specifically, I think the art I make is a combination of my life’s entirety. Everything I have seen, felt, or experienced, in some way, has influenced my artwork.. my style. Style is something that I think I have obtained. I know that everyone has a certain style, but I think that I have developed a very distinct style that is uniquely my own. And I did it without consciously thinking about developing a distinct style, it just happened, over time. Well, it was always there but I have fine-tuned it over the years. I think that since I live this artistic experience that my style has come about by just being myself, in that I am not faking it, I’m not playing a role. What I do and what you see is the real me. There is a sense of rawness, emotion, passion and a lot of other characteristics that make up who I am, and that is prevalent in my art. You can’t take it too serious either, there is humor involved as well. There is a little bit of everything, if you look at it right.

There have been a few categories that I have been placed in. I suppose to sum it up easily, especially for a broader audience (who might not recognize art lingo but still have interest, and for the sake of learning), I usually say that my art fits along the lines of abstract art. Before I continue this, I do not like to label myself as an abstract artist, this is just some collected thoughts that I have decided to share from the storage shelf of my mind behind a dusty jar of pennies.

The reason I don’t like the label of abstract art is because I feel that when people hear ‘abstract art’ that they get a mental image of purely none object art. Like maybe some kind of colors running across the surface, like a river of color, or an accident on the floor. And all of that is okay, but I don’t think that abstract accurately describes my style of work. It doesn’t fully explain my style of art. There are hints of what I just described in some of my artwork, but its not entirely made up of abstract art qualities.

How about Outsider Art? When I came across outsider art I felt a strong connection. Even if you read the characteristics of a stereotypical outsider artist. If I was judged purely by my life’s story and the strangeness of who I am, I would have all of the necessarily attributes to be an outsider artist. From mental bouts to my introspective perspective and anti-social behavior I fit in quite well. At the same time, the point of being an outsider artist is that you don’t have many things in common with other artists, which is why you’re an outsider. So possibly I’m outside of the outsiders circle. Maybe I’m beneath the underground. I am relatively unknown, even in my hometown. A lot of the traits deemed to an outsider artists is their persona and how they live their lives. If you look up images of outsider artwork, a lot of it looks very folksy, to me. It appears to be a more advanced form of folk art. And what I do doesn’t really match the imagery of most of the outsider artwork that I’ve seen.

Ultimately, what I’m trying to get at is that I do not fit into one specific category. My style is uniquely my own and uniquely significant to the art world. However the previous sentence is perceived, that is what I truly believe of myself. I am my own movement. Maybe I’m an independent outsider? The thing that is connected to the rest of existence is whatever the mystery is with the place where all things come from. My art comes from there, I think. That force flows through me and through all things, is what its all about. Mostly I’m just Robert. I make what I want and maybe their is no solid foundation to what I do, maybe there is? At times there is and at times there isn’t. I’m just the guy with the pen in my hand and the language that comes out of me is up for infinite interpretation. God? Love? A lack of? .. Its a little bit of all of those things, I suppose. Then again, what do I know? I’ve been wrong a time or two. As I’ve said before, sometimes the words get in the way of what I really want to say, which is one reason why I create.

Now that we didn’t get to any certain destination, and this probably provoked more questions and confusion, welcome to the first post of my blog. Thank you for reading and I am looking forward to sharing more writings and thoughts with whoever my audience may be. Stay tuned for more things written in the key of me. Amen. Namaste. Shallum. Krishna.