Robert Kushner

Robert Kushner is an American painter known for his involvement in the Pattern and Decoration movement. Founded in the mid-1970s, the movement sought to revere and produce forms of art that had been marginalized as feminine or trivial during the height of Modernism. Kushner’s work utilizes many influences—including Georgia O’Keeffe, Islamic textiles, and Chinese brush artists like Qi Bashi—to make ornamental yet emotionally involved paintings. His work is characterized by a use of rich color harmonies and bold, fluid drawing, combining natural, representational elements with abstract, geometric forms. Born in 1949 in Pasadena, CA, Kushner has created several large commissioned mural pieces around the world. He has been featured in three Whitney Biennials and two Venice Biennales, and is in the permanent collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Tate Gallery in London, and Museum Ludwig in St. Petersburg, among others. 

Night River

2016

Jacquard tapestry

55”x 113”

Change of Seasons

2005

Jacquard tapestry

36”x 80”

Further Changes

2009

Jacquard tapestry

36”x 80”