Robert Janz

Robert Janz (Belfast December 25, 1932 - New York City October 26, 2021), was a New York-based visual artist whose work often dealt with ephemeral phenomena.[1][2] His work has been described as having a "nomadic aspect",[3] exploring "change and transience" and the temporary quality of life.[4]

Robert Janz
Robert Janz in 1988
Born(1932-12-25)December 25, 1932
Belfast, Northern Ireland
DiedOctober 26, 2021(2021-10-26) (aged 88)
Tribeca, New York City, New York

Early life and education

Janz was vorn in Belfast, Northern Ireland in 1932. He was educated at the Maryland Institute College of Art, where he graduated with a MFA degree. Janz taught in London, Berlin and Spain.[5]

Work

Janz cites the work of the 17th century Japanese Haiku poet, Basho, as an early influence for his visual art. In his 20's he was sent to prison for resisting being drafted into the military. While incarcerated, a prison occupational therapist who had studied in Japan taught him how to work in ceramics to produce stoneware bowls using ancient Japanese techniques.[6]

In the 1970s Janz produced a series of recombinatory "stick sculptures" that could be arranged in a multiplicity of variations within a set of conceptual constraints.[3]

Janz exhibited his work internationally in Barcelona, Belfast, Los Angeles, Chicago, Lyon, Dublin, among other locations.[5] His work was included in three exhibitions at the Museum of Modern Art, New York,[7] as well as White Columns, the Irish Museum of Modern Art[8] among other venues.[9]

Later in his life, Janz focused on producing graffiti-type works in lower Manhattan.[10] He would reconfigure paper advertisement posters, transforming them into images of birds, flowers, faces and landscapes; he also added painted imagery and wrote on billboards in the form of wordplay poetry.[11]

Legacy

In 2020 a documentary film was made on him, titled Janz: In the Moment.[12]

Collections

His work is included in the collections of the Portland Art Museum,[13] the Barcelona Museum of Contemporary Art,[14] the Williams College Museum of Art,[15] among other venues.

References
  1. "Robert Janz, who painted the streets and sidewalks of the neighborhood, has died". Tribeca Citizen. 22 November 2021. Retrieved 22 November 2021. his death on Oct. 26.
  2. "Robert Janz and the art of disappearing". Tribeca Citizen. 20 September 2019. Retrieved 30 October 2021.
  3. Knight, Christopher (December 1979). "Robert Janz, L.A. Louver". Artforum. Retrieved 30 October 2021.
  4. "Robert Janz". Irish Museum of Modern Art. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  5. Edgars, Geoff (12 November 2001). "Art in Surreal Time". The News and Observer. Retrieved 30 October 2021.
  6. Mills, T.K. "Robert Janz: The Poetic Beauty of the Ephemeral". UP Magazine. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  7. "Robert Janz". Museum of Modern Art. Retrieved 30 October 2021.
  8. "Robert Janz". Irish Museum of Modern Art. Retrieved 30 October 2021.
  9. "Robert Janz: Six Lean Sticks". White Columns. Retrieved 30 October 2021.
  10. Moholo, Alan (11 November 2021). "Robert Janz, Artist of the Fleeting Image, 1932–2021". The Village Voice. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  11. Molho, Allan (11 November 2021). "Robert Janz, Artist of the Fleeting Image, 1932–2021". The Village Voice. Retrieved 22 April 2022.
  12. "Film honors Robert Janz and his work on our streets". Tribeca Citizen. 15 January 2020. Retrieved 30 October 2021.
  13. "Robert Janz". Portland Art Museum. Retrieved 30 October 2021.
  14. "Robert Janz, Belfast, Northern Ireland, 1932". Barcelona Museum of Contemporary Art. Retrieved 30 October 2021.
  15. "Robert Janz (collection search)". Williams College Museum of Art. Retrieved 30 October 2021.
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