Rob Tarbell

Region: South

City / State: Midlothian, VA

My work is driven by the transformation and manipulation of traditional and non-traditional materials and the exploration of unorthodox techniques. The work balances accident with control and gives permanence to the ephemeral. The absence of an original and the use of elaborate processes are inherent to my smoke, painting, and porcelain series.

All Ages reawakens the cut-and-paste Xerox collage culture of punk-rock flyers. The unpredictable black tones of the Xerox have been replaced by smoke captured to create an image on a surface. Though fictional, the imagery is documentary in character and parallels the balancing of accident with control, and chaos with its orchestration. The process encourages and discourages the flow of smoke, translating the photographs and collages into cover versions of the originals.