Biography & Recognitions
ARTIST BIOGRAPHY
Rob Rikoon has lived and worked in Santa Fe since 1979. His work is well known throughout New Mexico and he has devoted many years of service to the public through his painting, sculpture and published writings.
His arts education and wards include the Boston Museum school (1971 to 1973), teaching grant at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts (1973 to 1974), a E.B. Stoeckel scholarship to the Yale School of Art (1976) and a A.T. Mack Fellowship to the Villa Schifanoia (Florence, Italy 1978-79 ). Public installations include the “We Trust in the Loyalty of Old Friends” a 24’ x 6’ six panel mural on loan to the New Mexico Capital Art Foundation and on display in the rotunda of the New Mexico Roundhouse (2nd floor) and the “Liminal State” chapel at the Haywood Street Congregation Methodist Church in Asheville North Carolina.
Rob’s résumé includes numerous exhibitions held in New Mexico during his 40 year career as an artist based in Santa Fe. The artist transitioned to recycled steel sculpture in 2018, working with the help of his production manager, Sherwin Tarnoff, who attended the Art Institute of Chicago and has a Master of Mechanical Engineering from the University of Saint Louis. Together, they are called The Rikoon Studio, with a fully equipped welding shop in the east side of Santa Fe, which also serves as home to a 501c(3) educational dedicated to mentoring teenagers in the sculptural arts who can participate in the Rikoon team’s team effort of making public art.
Rob ‘s experience creating public art dates back to his early career in Boston and Philadelphia where he worked on designs for frescoes for public buildings . The inspiration for turning to metal sculpture came from a visit to the Holocaust Memorial in Berlin, Germany. As a result of that experience, The Rikoon Studio has designs and materials to build, once we find a suitable location in New Mexico, a 2 acre installation of steel and concrete structures that will be a “Memorial to the Civilian Victims of Modern Warfare”. The Rikoon Studio is an active group of metal fabricators who are capable of building and installing a highly finished piece of public art for the designated location at the end of Siler Road. We have been producing life sized metal figures for the last three years, all of which are exhibited at public parks, churches (see photo) and highly visible traffic thoroughfares. Our hope is that, if we are chosen for this Siler Road location of the Art in Public Places project, it will draw attention and inspire people to visit the sculpture garden across town on Richards Avenue, in Oshara Village, which is a showcase for local sculptors.
The five religious figures described in Mr. Rikoon’s Artist Statement are made from industrial steel component parts: pipes and square tubes as well as discarded structural steel remnants recovered from dumpsters at local fabrication shops. Using recycled materials honors the incredible longevity of man-made materials and elevates one person’s rubbish to another person’s treasure.
ART VITA
ROBERT ALLEN RIKOON
2218 Old Arroyo Chamiso
Santa Fe, NM 87505
EDUCATION
Santa Fe Community College, Santa Fe, NM
Various trade courses- 2018-2020
Master of Arts Program, Painting Division, Villa Schifanoia, Rosary College, 1978, Florence, Italy
B.A. Degree, Cum Laude, Visual and Environment Studies, Harvard College, 1977, Cambridge, Massachusetts
Norfolk Summer School for Painting, Drawing, Graphics and Photography, Yale University, 1976,
Norfolk, Connecticut
Anatomy, Boston University School of Fine Arts, 1976 Boston, Massachusetts
Materials and Techniques, Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, 1974 and 1977, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
EXHIBITION
Cabinet des Dessins, Louvre Museum, Paris, France
Galleries de Designi, Uffizi Palace, Florence, Italy
Idaho Centennial Biannual Museum Show,
Boise Art Museum, Spirit of the West, Idaho,
Ochi Gallery, Boise, Idaho,
Art Attack Gallery, Boise, Idaho,
New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology,
Tarbox Gallery, San Diego,
El Taller Taos, New Mexico,
Creative Connections, Albuquerque, New Mexico,
La Palomas Gallery, Denver, Colorado,
Munson Gallery, Santa Fe, New Mexico,
Sheila Olson Gallery, Albuquerque, New Mexico,
Govnr's Park, Denver, Colorado,
Sussman Gallery, Albuquerque, New Mexico,
Embers Gallery, Denver, Colorado,
Aldridge Fine Arts, Albuquerque, New Mexico,
Janus Gallery, Santa Fe, New Mexico,
Fontennetta Gallery, Santa Fe, New Mexico,
Horizon Gallery, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania,
Carpenter Center for the Visual Arts, Harvard University, Massachusetts,
Stoekel Gallery, Yale University, Connecticut,
Private Exhibitions in New York, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, and Los Angeles, California,
AWARDS
Goldblatt Commemorative Collection, "Artists of the Century," Chicago, Illinois,
Anabelle Taylor Mack Award, Villa Schifanoia, Florence, Italy,
Ellen Battell Stoekel Award, Yale University, Connecticut,
INSTALLATIONS
West One Bank, Boise, Idaho,
U.S. West, Boise, Idaho,
Blue Cross, Albuquerque, New Mexico, Albuquerque International Airport, New Mexico,
Public Service Company of New Mexico, New Mexico, First City Financial Corporation, New Mexico,
Winrock Shopping Center, New Mexico,
Mountain Bell, New Mexico,
Management Arts Services Corporation, New Mexico,
Breed, Abbot, and Morgan, New York,
Ollman Law Office, New York,