Old Talks with New Icons
Philip A. Robinson Jr.

“Clothing affects how other people perceive us as well as how we think about ourselves. To see the promise of a better self-reflected in an object is to imagine a better future.”

Clothing is not only universal it is non-binary. Designers and fabricators pull their inspiration from multiple cultures, demographics, environments, and elements. But depending on where you grew up, your culture, your religion, you may have not been introduced to a certain type of cloth, material or attire. These sculptures will allow the viewer to envision/re-invent themselves. They will serve as a conduit to the past as well as the future.

The clothed figure, devoid of the flesh, is affixed to highly polished stainless steel. The figure appears suspended between the physical space and its reflection. Although the figure is fixed, its situation is contingent on where the work is placed and the viewer’s chance reflection in it. As such, the work “is available for a continuous happening,” (Pistoletto). “The viewer and subject are both in the same situation, neither one can impose their will on the other.”

About the Artist 

Philip A. Robinson Jr. is an award-winning multi-media sculptor and conceptual artist, who uses wood to symbolize temporality within natural cycles of time and geography to amplify the narrative of identity within popular and marginalized cultures. Robinson has exhibited throughout the tri-state area including, a solo exhibition at the Untitled Space Gallery, Prizm Art Fair during Miami Art Basel, The Rush Arts Gallery, KL City Art Gallery in Malaysia, LuluLemon (Hudson Yards), The National Academy Museum and School, The Barrett Art Center, the Washington Square Outdoor Art Exhibition, The Frances Young Tang Museum and Art Gallery, 14C Jersey City Art show & Juried Exhibition, The Bronx Art Space, The Novado Gallery, The Bridge Art Gallery, Akwaaba Gallery, The Alta Art Building, Art At The Cave, The BSB Gallery, The Conceptions Art Show (New York), Neumeraki, Pro Arts Jersey City, The Carrie Able Gallery, Grace Church School Benefit Auction, the Merseles Studios, 107 Bowers Gallery, the Distillery Gallery, the NEWYORKMINDED Gallery, 1978 Maplewood Arts Center, and SNEAKERROOM. He received his BFA in Studio Art from Skidmore College and his MFA in Sculpture from Mason Gross School of the Arts, Rutgers.

For more information on Philip and his work visit his website and follow him on Instagram.

Philip is located in Gallery 8