Education
Coming from a family of professional artists and amateur carpenters, it was no surprise that Robin studied Silversmithing and Jewellery at Loughborough College of Art and Design from 1992-1995. He was once told that it is bad form to reveal that you got a first in your degree, but he disagrees; largely because he got a first. After a three-year stint in Hampshire as a lecturer in Art and Design, he became a self-employed gardener, author, artist, jewellery maker and photographer. Not necessarily in that order, not always at the same time and with varying degrees of success.
Materials and Making
Frustrated by the constant desire of society to pigeon-hole themselves and each other (as well as being an almost certain, but undiagnosed, case of ADHD) Robin has consistently strived to make work that combines all these disciplines and experiences and has always shied away from labels. His varied output manifests itself through digital and analogue photography, jewellery and small-scale sculptural items, writing, drawing and collage. Often taking a found object, image, drawing or piece of poetry/prose as a starting point, his two- and three-dimensional pieces are the result of a dialogue
between these entities and himself; these conversations can last minutes, or they can last decades.
Inspiration
A recurring theme in his work is that of the coastline; having been brought up in the middle of Britain in a middle-class family with middling exam results, he has sought the edges for as long as he can remember. Having been most at peace during childhood holidays spent picking interestingly-shaped splinters of knotted driftwood from the beaches of south-west Scotland, he dropped out of art-school first time around in 1988 and instead went and lived in a VW camper van with an Irish Wolfhound and a surfboard for a few years. The sea – ‘consolingly disastrous’ as John Masefield put it – has drawn him continuously and creatively for over fifty years.
Writing
Having had two non-fiction titles published by MacMillan in 2006 and 2008 (the first – Allotted Time – documenting his inaugural year on a rural Hampshire allotment, the second – The Incomplete Angler – recreating and recounting incipient mid-life reflections on previous sea-fishing exploits) he is currently working on producing an artist’s book of images and words which brings his interdisciplinary skills together. Provisionally entitled ‘Sea Fever’ (after Masefield’s poem of the same name), this volume will accompany a touring exhibition, scheduled to begin in 2025.
Talking
He is happy to discuss collaborations or commissions and welcomes the opportunity to work with the right galleries. If you would like to discuss any of the above, or how photography – indeed everything – was better when it was analogue then he would be delighted to hear from you via the contact page.