Robert Stevenson - On Narrative: Moving forward, in Retrospect by California State Univeristy Stanislaus School of the Arts

Rob e r t Steve nson On Nar rative : Movin g Fo r war d , in R e tr ospect

Rob e r t Steve nson On Nar rative : Movin g Fo r war d , in R e trospect University Ar t Galler y Depar tment of Ar t School of the Ar ts California State University, Stanislaus

300 copies printed

Robert Stevenson - On N a r ra t i v e: M ov i ng For wa r d , in Re tro s pe c t January 29â&#x20AC;&#x201C;March 2, 2018 University Art Gallery School of the Arts California State University, Stanislaus One University Circle Turlock, CA 95382

This exhibition and catalog have been funded by: Associated Students Instructionally Related Activities, California State University, Stanislaus

Catalog design and gallery installation photography: Brad Peatross, School of the Arts, California State University, Stanislaus Cover images: selections from 50,000 Words

ISBN: 978-1-940753-33-1

Con te n ts

Directorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Foreword.............................................................................................................................................................................................................................4 About the Artist......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................5 Artistâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Statement and Acknowledgements............................................................................................................................................................................6 Between the Arches..............................................................................................................................................................................................................................7 Scroll to the Sea...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................12 50,000 Words........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................14 Mathematics............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................22 Weekly Dolly Diary............................................................................................................................................................................................................................24 Traps............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................25 Emergent States...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................26 On Narrative: Moving Forward, in Retrospect Installation...........................................................................................................................................28 Curriculum Vitae..................................................................................................................................................................................................................................30 Acknowledgments .............................................................................................................................................................................................................................32

D ir e c tor ’s For ewor d

Rob Stevenson: On Narrative: Moving Forward, in Retrospect, represents a chance to view his wonderful work. Stevenson has steadily and successfully created magnificent bodies of work. In his recent pop up exhibition at the Carnegie Art Center in Turlock, Rob created one of the best exhibitions the Center has witnessed to date. A few years ago, the University Art Gallery’s exhibition titled Close to Home featured the work of the faculty of Merced College and Modesto Junior College. Through this joint exhibition a new program of solo exhibitions of teaching colleagues was created. Stevenson is one of the colleagues from Modesto Junior College. Many of Stevenson’s Junior College students have continued their education at California State University, Stanislaus. I have had the wonderful opportunity to work with many of these students, and it is clear that they have received an excellent education in the arts from Modesto Junior College. Many of these students have related to me how much they enjoyed and learned from Rob. He is a devoted and talented teacher. I am very excited to be able to exhibit Stevenson’s work for others to enjoy. I would like to thank the many colleagues that have been instrumental in presenting this exhibition: Rob Stevenson for the chance of exhibiting his brilliant work; the School of the Arts, California State University, Stanislaus for the catalog design; and Claremont Print and Copy for the printing this catalog. Much gratitude is extended to the Instructionally Related Activates Program of California State University, Stanislaus, as well as anonymous donors for the funding of the exhibition and catalogue. Their support is greatly appreciated.

Dean De Cocker Gallery Director California State University, Stanislaus

A b ou t t he A r t is t

Robert Stevenson is a California-based artist who has taught Studio Art and Art History at Modesto Junior College for the last sixteen years. He received his Master of Fine Arts from the San Francisco Art Institute, a Master of Arts in Humanities with an emphasis in Art History from California State University at Dominguez Hills, and a Bachelor of Arts in Art Practice and Art History from the University of California at Berkeley. His work has been shown throughout the United States as well as in South America and Europe. His works can be found in public collections including the Morrison Library in Berkeley, CA, McNeese University in Lake Charles, LA, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, NY. Robert has also worked as a printer or as master printer with such noteworthy artists as Peter Voulkos, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, and Terry Allen. Recent scholarly awards include National Endowment for the Humanities Institute Fellowships to study South Asian culture in New Delhi, India; to Study Islam in Asia at the East-West Center in Honolulu, Hawaii; and a grant from the Korea Society to study Korean culture at the Academy for Korean Studies in Seoul, South Korea.

A r t is t â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s St a te m e n t

About On Narrative: Moving Forward, in Retrospect: This exhibition comprises seven bodies of work that explore the idea of the role of narration through static, printed images. These bodies of work take narrative strategies in several different directions, including animation, hand-made book forms, paper structures, non-traditional hanging techniques, and a scroll that is seen in the round. Over one thousand five hundred individual images will be included, the majority of which are etchings made over a two-decade span. These works come out of my continued interest in narration and what can constitute a storyline in a work without text. These series are less about narrating directly, but rather how viewers take related works from a series to create connections. The imagery is meant to be evocative more than illustrative. These bodies of work take that narrative line in different directions, even referencing the visual lines connecting the imagery along physical lines.

Acknowledgements There are so many people who have supported and inspired me during the two decades in which this work was made that it is nearly impossible to thank everyone properly, but I will try, and apologize in advance for anyone I have omitted. Foremost I would like to thank my family, my wife Sarah, my parents Don and Aileen Stevenson, Camylle Reynolds, Roxanne Stevenson, Jim and Fang Stevenson, Mark and Val Boles, John and Sandy Kozero, and Hal Kam. I would like to thank all of the artists and educators who have influenced me and helped me to find my voice, in particular Randy Hussong, Wendy Sussman, Katherine Sherwood, Bret Buckman, Stephanie Peek, Tim Berry, Jim Cambronne, Jeremy Morgan, Mariella Poli, Charles Hobson, Sandra Davis, Kay Bradner, and Kirstin Ellsworth. I would like to thank those who supported me in travel and research that enhanced my ideas and experiences, including the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Korea Society, the East-West Center, the Yosemite Faculty Association, Yosemite Community College District, and George Boodrookas and the Modesto Junior College Foundation. I would like to thank my colleagues at Modesto Junior College, in particular Jim Johnson, Mike Sundquist, Richard Serros, Tom Duchscher, and Terry Hartman. I would also like to thank all of those who gave me opportunities and assistance in exhibiting my work in the odd and difficult ways that I have preferred, including Kevin Radley, Mary Scheinuck, Haleh Niazmand, Lisa McDermott, Flora Carter, the Carnegie Arts Center in Turlock, Brian Swander, Scott Sargent from Audio Visual Workshop, and of course Dean DeCocker, Nikki Boudreau, Brad Peatross, and the University Art Gallery at California State University, Stanislaus.

B e t we e n t he A r ches

Between the Arches explores the linear construction of history and time, through arched windows, one of our most historically loaded yet ubiquitous and ignored structures. Each Proscenium Archway presents a scene whose only context is its sequential relation to the other fifteen Proscenium Archways. Between the Arches: Proscenium Archway I-XVI, 2016 16 intaglio prints utilizing etching, aquatint, and burnishing on copper plates

S cr oll to S e a

Scroll to Sea takes the imagery of 50,000 Words and Between the Arches further into the horizon line along the most linear book structure in the exhibit. It explores the relationship between story, form, and picture plane, presenting the imagery in a much different, more continuous form than the other two works. The lines in these three works are meant to intertwine, changing perspectives and readings.

Scroll to Sea, 2016 Ink on watercolor paper, book cloth, and red oak structure

50 , 0 0 0 Wor ds

The novella 50,000 Words seeks to test whether one image is truly equivalent to one thousand words. I explored the verbal value of the image by participating in National Novel Writing Month, in which writers attempt to produce a new novella of fifty thousand words or more with no prior planning. If a picture is worth a thousand words, then these fifty-three etchings should be worth fifty-three thousand. 50,000 Words, 2010â&#x20AC;&#x201C;11 53 intaglio prints in 15 hand-printed folios Etching, aquatint and burnishing on copper plates

M a t he ma t ic s

Mathematics is a livre d’artiste made in collaboration with writer and artist Sarah Stevenson. In this tradition, the narrative and images are meant to complement one another, but not directly illustrate its counterpart. Both parts can stand alone or be stronger together. Mathematics, 2004 A livre d’artiste (artist’s book) with: A short story laser-printed and chine colléed by Sarah J. Stevenson 11 intaglio prints utilizing etching, aquatint, and burnishing on copper plates by Robert Stevenson

We e k l y Doll y D ia r y

Weekly Dolly Diary commemorates the life of Dolly the sheep, the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s first truly cloned (printed) animal. The plate was printed once for every week she lived. Like Dolly herself, the plate contains flaws which become apparent through the breakdown of the image caused by printing. Dolly was euthanized on February 14, 2003 due to illnesses caused by complications in the cloning process. She is survived by four genomic copies, all very healthy, and six lambs. Weekly Dolly Diary, 2003 Etching, aquatint and burnishing on zinc

Tr a ps

Traps I-VIII is presented more as an historical document. While teaching in Florence, Italy, I became fascinated by predella: small narrative cycles that accompanied Medieval and Renaissance altarpieces. This series of eight prints came directly out of that interest, and is meant to be seen together, but without a larger image that would give them context and subordinate them. Traps I-VIII, 1999-2000 Etching, aquatint and burnishing on copper plates

E m e r ge n t St a tes

Emergent States was made over a two-year span when I took a single etching plate through 1005 unique states. Each state was printed only once, then altered and printed. The events were not choreographed, and drew directly from the information in the previous state and improvised. The resulting 1005 prints were then shot on a traditional animation stand in 16mm color negative film. For gallery showing, a digital capture was taken. This work combines process and progression, making a static, time-consuming event into an approximately six-minute story in motion. Emergent States, 2000â&#x20AC;&#x201C;2001 1005 unique state proofs utilizing etching, aquatint, and burnishing on zinc & 16mm color negative film in digital capture

O n Na r ra t iv e : Mov i n g For wa r d , i n R et r os p ec t , 2018 Installation, California State University, Stanislaus University Art Gallery, Turlock, California

Robert Stevenson

Education 2016 California State University, Dominguez Hills Master of Arts, Humanities with and emphasis in Art History Awards: Pi Lambda Theta- 1st Place Student Research Day: Humanities IV 2000 The San Francisco Art Institute Master of Fine Arts, Printmaking Awards: Graduate Merit Fellowship 1997 University of California at Berkeley Bachelor of Arts, Art Practice and Art History Awards: Departmental Honors in Art High Distinction in General Scholarship Phi Beta Kappa Golden Key National Honor Society Recent Teaching Experience 2001â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Modesto Junior College Professor of Art, Art History and Humanities Select Solo Exhibitions 2018

On Narrative: Moving Forward, in Retrospect, University Art Gallery, CSU Stanislaus, Turlock, CA

2016

Along the Lines, for the 100th Anniversary Celebration, Carnegie Arts Center, Turlock, CA

2011

50,000 Words, Modesto Junior College Art Gallery, Modesto, CA

2004

Works in Series, Prospect Gallery, Modesto, CA

2003

Works in Series, Modesto Junior College Art Gallery, Modesto, CA

1999

New Works, Diego Rivera Gallery, San Francisco, CA

Select Group Exhibitions 2013