By Robert Najlis
Medium: Oil on panel
Size: 12" x 12"
There is a deeper thread that connects us all. My work is romantic in its emotional feel for the web of life of which we are a part. It suggests the permeability, whereby all aspects of life touch and interconnect with each other. Life as a whole, take center stage, not simply the human experience of it. I am inspired by the philosophy of Spinoza, who sees everything as expressions of nature. This shifts our thinking from Platonic dualism to a sense of unity, as we are aspects of the same substance. As I feel my relationship to the world around me, I see our commonality, and begin to take better care of those around me, regardless of differences. It also pushes me to care more for the environment, showing me how my actions echo throughout this living tapestry. There is a pleasure in this relationship, as the small things occurring around me take on a greater meaning.
Robert Najlis is an artist, working predominantly in painting, but also with interactive sound art and installation. In his work, Robert brings together both traditional skills and new concepts, researching ideas from thousands of years ago to work together with current day quantum mechanics and artificial intelligence. In addition to his artwork, he has written books on color theory, focusing on color movements and relationships.
He is a Fulbright scholar, with a masters of fine arts from the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, and a masters in computer science with a focus on artificial intelligence and cognitive science from Indiana University. He also studied at the Art Students League of New York in the lineage of Hans Hofmann and George Bridgman. Robert was born in Brooklyn, NY, and has also spent significant time in Latin America and Asia, and he speaks both Spanish and Chinese Fundamental to all of his ideas is a focus on listening; feeling with sensitivity the resonances around us.
Interested in this piece? Reach out to our gallery manager at livinglese@chicagofineartsalon.com .