Exhibition dates: July 15 – October 1, 2004
Robert Ortbal: New Kingdom
Gallery 555
555 12th Street, Oakland, CA
Lobby. Hours 7am - 6pm.
located in downtown Oakland
Open and free to the public. BART, AC Transit and Wheelchair accessible.

Presented by the Oakland Museum of California Professional Services division
Professional Services Exhibition Archive

Robert Ortbal, Parallel Questions: Balls and cones, 2003, wax, wire, tool dip, super balls, styrofoam, 50" x 19" x 16"

The Oakland Museum of California is pleased to present New Kingdom, a collection of new works by Robert Ortbal at Gallery 555, located at 555 12th Street in Oakland, California.

Robert Ortbal’s work is not easily defined; his creative process regenerates itself within each different environment in which he displays artworks. As such, the work transforms the exhibition space from something expected into something unexpected. Ortbal states, “I search for the hidden growth within real and imagined spaces to articulate psychological states of being.”

His materials range from the ephemeral, such as onions, grapes and eggshells, to common everyday materials like cardboard, plastic wrap, aluminum foil, tin cans and tea bags. Ortbal also uses found objects, including birdcages, clock mechanisms and satellite dishes, transforming their existing appearance into something new and ethereal. By dipping a birdcage repeatedly into wax (Release, 2000), the cage becomes nearly solid; the space between each rod reduced to almost nothing. In other pieces, Ortbal uses industrial spray foam, giving a seemingly formless material structure, weight and stability.

Robert Ortbal, Frozen Intricacies, 2003 wax, foam, paint, 11" x 19" x 19"

His work combines aspects from the plant, animal and mineral kingdoms to form what Ortbal calls “hybrids” of natural phenomena and human nature. He says of New Kingdom that these “hybrids” are influenced by the decorative and applied arts of the Rococo (18th century) and Art Nouveau (1890-1914) time periods. Drawing from a myriad of complex, two-dimensional patterns, Ortbal strives to recreate their intricacy in three-dimensional form. The resulting works are familiar yet revisited and altered in new ways giving rise to questions about their function, usage and metaphor.

Ortbal currently lives and works in Emeryville, CA. He received his M.F.A. from the University of California, Davis where he worked with Robert Arneson and Manuel Neri. He is the recipient of a Eureka Fellowship from the Fleishhacker Foundation, the largest cash prize for an individual artist in the Bay Area. His extensive resume includes exhibitions at:

• Sculpture Center, Utica, NY
• 9-1-1 Media Art Center, Seattle, WA
• The Lab, San Francisco
• Bedford Gallery, Walnut Creek
• Gallery Paule Anglim, San Francisco
• Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art, Boulder, CO
• San Francisco Arts Commission
• Richmond Art Center, Richmond
• Marjorie Wood Gallery, San Francisco

Robert Ortbal: New Kingdom is presented by the Oakland Museum of California in partnership with Shorenstein Realty Services. The exhibition is part of a changing exhibition series at Gallery 555 and represents an ongoing collaboration between the museum and Shorenstein to showcase contemporary artists. Gallery 555 is located on the lobby level of 555 12th Street in downtown Oakland.