Earlier this month, we saw an exhibit at the Visual Arts Center of Richmond by Bob Trotman. His exhibit was titled "Business as Usual", and was part installation, part sculpture, and part something very, very unique. Bob Trotman was the son of a prosperous businessman, who went to college and received a degree in philosophy. He now has a studio in the mountains of North Carolina, where he is somewhat reclusive. His work is done primarily in wood. He stresses how pointless and dull mainstream life is; the main theme is "corporate purgatory".
REACTION
I was utterly blown away by this exhibit. It left me feeling both awestruck and somewhat creeped out. I was awestruck for a number of reasons. One was that I was impressed by the mechanics of his work. While some were just sculpture or sketches, many of the pieces had literal movement or incorporated modern technology. The main reason that I was impressed, though, was that Bob Trotman managed to clearly and movingly make a statement about society. His points could not be misconstrued; they could either repel or inspire. However, it made me pose a few questions about his work, besides the rudimentary "how is that bucket not overflowing?" type questions. I wondered what the significance of wood, the primary material in his work, was (Note: in his artist's statement he says he used wood carvings as a contemporary version of religious figures or the figureheads of ships). There also appeared to be a recurring motif of hands in his work, which I assumed was because hands carry out artwork but also are the tools to make life decisions. It was also fascinating to make inferences about Bob Trotman's influences: in an act of rebellion against his father and the conservative town he resided in, he went to college to become a philosopher, then became a reclusive artist making anti-corporate work.
REACTION
I was utterly blown away by this exhibit. It left me feeling both awestruck and somewhat creeped out. I was awestruck for a number of reasons. One was that I was impressed by the mechanics of his work. While some were just sculpture or sketches, many of the pieces had literal movement or incorporated modern technology. The main reason that I was impressed, though, was that Bob Trotman managed to clearly and movingly make a statement about society. His points could not be misconstrued; they could either repel or inspire. However, it made me pose a few questions about his work, besides the rudimentary "how is that bucket not overflowing?" type questions. I wondered what the significance of wood, the primary material in his work, was (Note: in his artist's statement he says he used wood carvings as a contemporary version of religious figures or the figureheads of ships). There also appeared to be a recurring motif of hands in his work, which I assumed was because hands carry out artwork but also are the tools to make life decisions. It was also fascinating to make inferences about Bob Trotman's influences: in an act of rebellion against his father and the conservative town he resided in, he went to college to become a philosopher, then became a reclusive artist making anti-corporate work.