DFN Gallery is pleased to present an exhibition of new paintings by Robert Selwyn.  Recognized for his satirical and whimsical portraits of political and media icons and surreal landscapes of contemporary America, Selwyn’s new work continues in a sardonic vein - pairing developer-designed suburban houses with enticing television newscasters reporting the disaster du jour.

Selwyn’s “squiggly” portrayals of mass-produced, pseudo-classical suburban homes imply that the comfort that comes with ownership of such houses (perhaps with the help of an interest-only mortgage from a sub-prime lender) is, in fact, an illusion. As critic Edward Gomez writes in the catalogue accompanying this exhibit:

…with their resemblance to reflections on the surface of a swimming pool, Selwyn’s strange, dreamy images of wiggly-wobbly houses suggest that the stability of the American home - the very symbol of the American family as the solid, basic unit of  suburban society – may not be all it’s cracked up to be.” 

Selwyn’s perfectly coiffed newscasters are eerily similar to one another and seem to be detached from the chaotic images appearing beside them.  These basic cable Mona Lisas, on view 24 hours a day, have become as much a part of the zeitgeist as the terrorist bombings and natural disasters that have marked our recent history.   

Taken together, Selwyn’s houses and newscasters, while depicting the banality of contemporary collective taste, prove to be compelling subjects for painting.  

Robert Selwyn received his BFA from Pratt Institute in 1980 and his MFA from The Yale School of Art in 1989.  He has exhibited in New York and internationally for over twenty years.  He has received an honorarium from the National Endowment for the Arts, and participated in the World Trade Center Artist-in-Residency program. 

A catalogue with an essay by Edward M. Gomez is available through the gallery. 

A reception will be held for the artist on
Thursday, September 6th from 6 to 8 PM

To view the entire exhibition click here.