Cara Ober is a celebrated local artist and professor who offers her readers an insider's glimpse of the Baltimore arts scene, as well as a guide to what's ahead.

More Articles
Topics

ACORN: Sometimes a Nut is Just a Nut

Awesome = Franz West Opening Reception at the BMA!

Baltimore Open Studio Tour Etiquette 101

The Price of HATE as a Political Strategy

Franz West at BMA - on the Cover of Artforum's October Issue

Grimaldis Gallery

Maryland Art Place

School 33

Baltimore Museum of Art

American Visionary Art Museum

Art in America

Barry Nemett

Beach Art

BEST OF - Baltimore City Paper Awards

Best of Baltimore Party

Bethesda Painting Awards

Critics in Residency Program

Maryland Institute College of Art

Maryland State Arts Council

McCain-Palin

MENZ Show

MSAC

National Endowment for the Arts

Presidential Rebate Checks

The Phillips Collection

Examiner Feeds

These websites were picked by the Baltimore Art Examiner as useful resources.

View: All Sources

Daily Campello Art News - 2 hrs 19 mins ago

Josiah McElheny at White Cube

Art 21 - 8 hrs ago

Daily Campello Art News - 8 hrs ago

Favorite Art Blogs

Baltimore Examiners

Dylan Waugh
Maryland Terrapins Basketball Examiner
Most Recent Post
Graduation rate still bad, but improving

Bernie Thomas
Baltimore News and Traffic Examiner
Most Recent Post
A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words

Steve DeClue
Baltimore Football Examiner
Most Recent Post
Ravens quiet at trade deadline

Adam Meister
Baltimore Politics Examiner
Most Recent Post
What to do with the dirt bikes

Jay Trucker
Baltimore Orioles Examiner
Most Recent Post
I root for the O's and whoever plays a Philadelphia team

Browse All Examiners

Find the Examiners
writing about your
favorite topics.

Find Examiners »

Robert Rauschenberg: October 22, 1925 - May 12, 2008

1 comment

May 15, 3:58 PM

by Cara Ober, Baltimore Art Examiner

"The artist's job is to be a witness to his time in history." - Robert Rauschenberg

"You begin with the possibilities of the material." - Robert Rauschenberg

"I always have a good reason for taking something out but I never have one for putting something in. And I don't want to, because that means that the picture is being painted predigested." - Robert Rauschenberg

"And all of this, all these physical aspects of painting at that time excited me very much. You could do a picture in just black and white. I mean all the things, whether you're soliciting permission or not, do give you permission." - Robert Rauschenberg

Rauschenberg is perhaps most famous for his "Combines" of the 1950s, in which non-traditional materials and objects were employed in innovative combinations. While the Combines are both painting and sculpture, Rauschenberg has also worked with photography, printmaking, papermaking, and performance. Rauschenberg had a tendency to pick up the trash that interested him on the streets of New York City and bringing it back to his studio to use it in his works. He claimed he "wanted something other than what I could make myself and I wanted to use the surprise and the collectiveness and the generosity of finding surprises. And if it wasn't a surprise at first, by the time I got through with it, it was. So the object itself was changed by its context and therefore it became a new thing."

In 1953, Rauschenberg stunned the art world by erasing a drawing by de Kooning. In 1964 Rauschenberg was the first American artist to win the Grand Prize at the Venice Biennale (Mark Tobey and James Whistler had previously won the Painting Prize). Since then he has enjoyed a rare degree of institutional support. Rauschenberg lived and worked in New York City and on Captiva Island, Florida until his death on May 12, 2008, from heart failure.

Erased de Kooning Video:

Topics: Robert Rauschenberg

Feed

Comments

ACORN: Sometimes a Nut is Just a Nut

8 comments

October 14, 11:44 PM

You’ve probably heard about ‘the scandal’ by now- or possibly read the examiner dot com article titled ‘ACORNS – The Nuts That Ain’t For Squirrels’ by Traffic AND News Examiner, Bernie Thomas. If not, the summary... Read More
Topics: ACORN , Voter Fraud

Feed

Comments

Awesome = Franz West Opening Reception at the BMA!

2 comments

October 14, 1:32 PM

I want to encourage EVERYONE, even you art haters out there, to go to the Baltimore Museum of Art to see the new Franz West mega-exhibition. It was so good it made Costas Grimaldis smile! It was so good it made my toes curl! This is a photo of my friends... Read More
Topics: Franz West , BMA

Feed

Comments

Baltimore Open Studio Tour Etiquette 101

Add a Comment

October 13, 12:27 PM

Sculpture by David Page. Page's studio is in Area 405.OPEN STUDIO TOUR 2008Saturday, October 18 and Sunday, October 19 -- Noon-5pmIndex Exhibition and Reception at School 33 Art Center Friday October 17, 5-7 PMSchool 33 Says: "Through this free,... Read More
Topics: School 33 , Open Studios Tour

Feed

Comments

The Price of HATE as a Political Strategy

9 comments

October 11, 12:05 PM

This is an image from a political advertisement that was circulated in Dallas -- the day before John F. Kennedy was assassinated. The image is from the national archives. It is a chilling reminder of the power of hate-filled rhetoric.This image should... Read More
Topics: McCain-Palin

Feed

Comments

Franz West at BMA - on the Cover of Artforum's October Issue

Add a Comment

October 10, 12:28 PM

Franz West: To Build A House You Start With The RoofWork: 1972 - 2008October 12, 2008 - January 4, 2009Considered one of the most important living artists, Franz West has created an extraordinary body of work since the 1970's. This exhibition, premiering... Read More
Topics: Franz West , BMA

Feed

Comments

Studio Visit with Zoe Charlton

Add a Comment

October 8, 1:08 PM

I stopped by Zoe's studio on Friday, October 3 to check out her new drawings. She has a solo show opening this Thursday at Towson University and another opening in three weeks at Conner Contemporary in DC.We looked at some new life-sized figure drawings...... Read More
Topics: Zoe Charlton

Feed

Comments

Three Excellent Art Openings this Thursday, October 9

Add a Comment

October 7, 12:46 PM

Zoe Charlton: Recent Works at Towson UniversityZoe Charltonis an Assistant Professor of Art and faculty in the MFA Program at American University. She creates paintings, drawings, and videos that are narrative and figurative and which address issues... Read More
Topics: Zoe Charlton , WC Richardson , Loyola Collects

Feed

Comments

Stories From The Woods at Current - Pics from Friday, October 3

2 comments

October 6, 1:18 PM

Artist Rick Dulaney with Stories Curator Alex Ebstein.Current is a great store-front space on Calvert Street in downtown Baltimore. It is located about a block from the Inner Harbor. You've probably driven past this space a hundred times and never noticed.... Read More
Topics: Current Space

Feed

Comments

AVAM Marries Art, Science, and Philosophy - Opening Reception Pics from Friday, October 3

Add a Comment

October 4, 12:30 PM

The Marriage of Art, Science & PhilosophyOctober 4, 2008 - September 6, 2009Friday • October 3 • 7PM–10PM: EXHIBITION OPENING PARTY: THE MARRIAGE OF ART, SCIENCE & PHILOSOPHYJoin artists, scientists, philosophers, lenders, museum... Read More
Topics: American Visionary Art Museum

Feed

Cara Ober

Examiner Feeds

Favorite Art Blogs

Baltimore Examiners

Robert Rauschenberg: October 22, 1925 - May 12, 2008

Comments

More from Baltimore Art Examiner

Comments

Comments

Comments

Comments

Comments

Comments

Comments

Comments

Comments