In many ways, the narrative of this exhibition begins with Robert Rauschenberg because of his early efforts in creating dialogue with cultures deemed peripheral. Although he’s often described as the first and most influential postmodern artist, the unparalleled scope and diversity of Rauschenberg’s work defies categorization. The acclaimed painter, sculptor, photographer, printmaker and performer was a pioneering figure in contemporary art, employing an unusually wide range of mediums, technique and subject matter in his practice.

 

Rauschenberg was committed to the notion of collaboration, which resulted in a variety of creative endeavors. He partnered with artists, craftspeople, engineers, writers, composers and performers on a number of projects including the Rauschenberg Overseas Culture Interchange, a huge, traveling exhibition that embodied his belief that artistic collaboration could be a catalyst for social change. He was the first artist of his stature to initiate a project about peace and understanding through the production of art.

 

In 1964 Rauschenberg was the first American to win the Grand Prize for painting at the 32nd International Art Exhibition of la Biennale di Venezia, an honor that established him internationally.

 

Robert Rauschenberg’s work has been shown in galleries and museums worldwide, including the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum and The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles; the Contemporary Arts Museum and the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, Venice; the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, Spain; Centre Pompidou, Paris; Moderna Museet, Stockholm; Museu de Arte Contemporânea de Serralves, Porto, Portugal; Museum Tinguely, Basel, Switzerland; and the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh.

 

Born in Port Arthur, Texas, 1925 and died in 2008 | Lived and worked in New York and Captiva Island, Florida