Renee Robbins | Expedition Spectrum | September 14 - October 18, 2025
Night Watching, 2022, acrylic, aerosol and colored pencil on paper, 16 x 20 inches
Opening Reception: Sunday, September 14, 2025, 3:00 - 6:00 PM
Join us afterwards for a private cocktail hour at the Quincy Street Distillery
Exhibition Dates: September 14 - October 18, 2025
Exhibition on view: Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays 1:00 – 5:00 PM
Artist Talk: TBD
The Riverside Arts Center’s FlexSpace is pleased to present Expedition Spectrum, Renee Robbin's solo exhibition of paintings on paper, curated by Joanne Aono. Please join us on Sunday, September 14th for an opening reception followed by a private cocktail hour. An artist talk will be held on a date to be announced.
Lunaria, 2022, acrylic, aerosol and colored pencil on paper, 16 x 20 inches
Renee Robbins' Expedition Spectrum paintings resemble film stills about a fantastical journey to another planet. There, we encounter underwater scenes of plant-like creatures, their tentacles flowing with the current. Robbins' soft spray of aerosol paint allows us to swim through the washes of aquamarine and purple as we bump up against the hard edges of colorful acrylic brush strokes. In her world, the land is comprised of vibrant flora and fauna glowing in iridescent green, pink, and orange, contrasted by an endless sky of thinly layered single-toned blue or violet.
Who inhabits these spaces? We may spot a sun star or the light from fireflies, but the artist leaves these settings for us to explore privately. As we wander the mysterious depths of each painting, the flat patterns and transparent colors pull us in, challenging our perception of scale. Are we entering a space filled around us or are we viewing a slide through a microscope?
Robbins has utilized her vocabulary of plants, cells, astronomy, pattern, and color in paintings ranging from tiny handheld panels to building-sized murals. With the latter, she was introduced to the effects that aerosol paints provide - from light sprays to stencils of bold color. Incorporating this medium with precise brushwork, she creates joyous settings, reminiscent of classic movie animation and the feel-good stories they provoke. Each of her paintings sets the scene, providing us with a bright color palette and radiant images to guide our imagination to a delightful resolution.
–Joanne Aono, curator
Firefly Signals, 2022, acrylic, aerosol and colored pencil on paper, 16 x 20 inches
Artist Statement
I create paintings and murals inspired by the natural world ranging from subatomic to telescopic. My imaginative visual environments consider the complex relationships between humans, nature, and the cosmos. We learn about magic all around us through the lenses of microscopes, magnifying glasses, cameras, and telescopes. Moving between real and imagined subjects, my work broadens our awareness to enrich our lives. For example, I position hybrid flora/fauna within new interpretations of the deep sea and the night sky. That includes cells, flowering botanicals, aquatic species, and celestial bodies. By creating associations between things that are seemingly disparate in scale and form, my work shows the world through a new lens. This abstract space is luminously populated with dots, circles, and hieroglyphic-like marks. In this way, my images reflect the diverse world and the power of nature by creating awe and a sense of wonder.
Expedition Spectrum Series Statement
Expedition Spectrum gives the viewer a visual opportunity to meditate on color; to connect their thoughts toward inner awareness and close observation of nature minutiae. The paintings journey into unknown spaces inspired by bird songs, forest canopies, and seafoam, much like an expedition. With these prompts from nature, the works focus on depicting simple pleasures and silver linings. Viewing the paintings invites a chance to slow down and explore our surroundings. With this introspection comes resilience, no matter where we are. The painting process I employ is the culmination of my personal quest to find joy in color and to radiate warmth and optimism on each piece. The works act like fantastical prisms of nature, reflecting the shifting magic of color, from red through purple, one color at a time. Expedition Spectrum renews the spirit with color and points the mindset towards hope.
-Renee Robbins
Low Moon, 2022, acrylic, aerosol and colored pencil on paper, 16 x 20 inches
Renee Robbins is a Chicago-based visual artist who layers biomorphic forms to create detailed otherworldly environments. She has been awarded public art commissions with Chicago Public Art Group, Wabash Arts Corridor, and the Illinois’ Art-In-Architecture program. Robbins has exhibited widely, including exhibitions at Lois Lambert Gallery, Santa Monica, CA; Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, Chicago, IL; Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, Batavia, IL; and the Alden B Dow Museum of Science and Art, Midland, MI. Press features include PBS WTTW Chicago Tonight, Chicago Gallery News, Chicago Magazine, Inside/Within, and an audio interview on Ahtcast. The forms in her paintings have been classified by a diatom taxonomist in an artist feature on the US Diatoms database at the University of Colorado. Honors include three grants from the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and a grant from the Illinois Arts Council. Robbins received an MFA from Michigan State University and a BFA from University of Kentucky.