ROBERT TOWNSEND
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2019
ROBERT TOWNSEND Helen Series
Jackson Hole | Scottsdale | AltamiraArt.com
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Robert Townsend
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Once upon a time, California artist Robert Townsend bought some slides on eBay, hoping to find the Americana scenes he paints in his hyperrealist style. Thus begins the heartwarming story of a contemporary painter who discovered far more than material inspiration: he found his muse—a woman who lived her life in full-color Kodachrome. And the more he learned about Helen, the louder the call became to spend the next two decades of his life painting her life—her marriage, her travels, her panache and her personality. “Helen will keep him busy for years,” says her surviving niece Cheryl. “He just has to follow the trail.” And follow her trail he does in his exhibition of new paintings, Helen and Roy’s Blue Hawaii, at Altamira and in the award-winning documentary, My
Indiana Muse, by Serena Creative, which has been featured in 18 film festivals across the country. On canvas and onscreen, Townsend conveys the magic of this midcenturymeets-modern fairy tale: how two lives, separated by time and place, can share the same joie de vivre. “I think she’s teaching a lesson—to me—about celebrating life,” Townsend says. Altamira Fine Art is proud to feature an artist as intuitive and inspired as Townsend. Having spent decades diligently painting commonplace icons of the American landscape—neon signs, hotel billboards, old cars cast in a style influenced by the likes of Wayne Thiebaud and Robert Bechtle —he has finally found his raison d’être: To celebrate the joy of living the American dream, as Helen did every day.
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HELEN SERIES AVAIL ABLE AND IN PRIVATE C OLLEC TIONS
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Happy Place, 2019 Oil on canvas | 57 x 86 inches Enquire
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Original slide
A Spare Rib Homecoming, 2019 Oil on canvas | 56 x 85 inches Enquire
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Original slide
Blue Hawaii, 2019 Oil | 56 x 85 inches Sold, Private Collection – Florida
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Original slide
The Diamond Head Game, 2019 Oil on canvas | 69.75 x 104 inches Commission, Private Collection - Pasadena, CA
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Original slide
Snow Heels, 2018 Oil on canvas | 58 x 82 inches Private Collection – Jackson, Wyoming
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In process
Simply Helen, 2018 Oil on canvas | 60 x 48.75 inches Private Collection – Palm Springs, Califorina
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Original slide
Wanderlust (Helen), 2018 Oil on canvas | 51 x 76 inches Private Collection – Scottsdale, Arizona
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Original slide
Wanderlust (Roy), 2017 Oil on canvas | 51 x 76 inches Private Collection – Scottsdale, Arizona
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Original slide
Reflections and Rivets, 2016 Oil on canvas | 69.5 x 104 inches Private Collection – Houston, Texas
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Original slide
Keeping Up With the Conley’s, 2016 Oil on canvas | 69.5 x 104 inches Private Collection – Scottsdale, Arizona
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Original slide
American Girl, 2017 Oil | 69.5 x 104 inches Private Collection - Jackson Hole, WY
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Original slide
Lunchtime At Nickerson’s, 2016 Oil on panel | 55 x 82 inches Private Collection – Scottsdale, Arizona
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Original slide
Just Kay and Patty!, 2015 Oil on canvas | 64 x 95 inches Private Collection – Mountain View, California
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OTHER WORK
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No Phone, No Pool, No Pets Oil on custom shaped artist board | 29 x 66 inches Enquire
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Add Color in Your Home Watercolor | 42 x 52 inches Enquire
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Waiting for Spring Oil on canvas | 32.5 x 49 inches Enquire
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On the Road Again Watercolor on Paper | 48 x 37.5 inches Enquire
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Jelly Donut Oil on canvas | 34 x 34 inches SOLD
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Greetings from Jackson Hole Oil on canvas | 54 x 55 inches SOLD
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Wall Clock Oil on canvas | 54 x 60 inches SOLD
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THE FILM
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Movie Trailers
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Click to watch trailer >
Click to watch trailer >
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Film Festivals, Awards & Recognition
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In the Press LA Weekly Gladstones Revamps, Revives • Deadmau5 Goes Orchestral ®
MARCH 30 - APRIL 5, 2018 / VOL. 40 / NO. 19 / LAWEEKLY.COM
AN ARTIST’S OBSESSION
ROBERT TOWNSEND SAW “MOD WOMAN” IN VINTAGE SLIDES AND UNCOVERED HER STORY. A NEW FILM DETAILS HIS DECISION TO MAKE HER HIS LIFE’S WORK.
BY AMY ROBERTS
Click to read the article >
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13 Things I Found on the Internet
Click here to read >
The Jealous Curator Podcast
Click to listen to podcast >
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7038 E Main Street | Scottsdale, Arizona 85251 AltamiraArt.com | 480-949-1256
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