Robert Vowles

I was born May 31, 1959 in Toronto Canada, at the time a bastion WASP conformity. At a young age I developed an interest in live theater which led to acting jobs and a stint in circus's and carnivals as a showman. "Have you see a 6 foot tall man eating chicken?" Upon graduating from U of T with an Honors BA in Political Science I incarnated myself as a commercial artist and created miniature sets and models for ad agencies. In 1993 I formed the "Labyrinth Group" and spearheaded a proposal to convert a moribund power plant into a theater-theme park hybrid on the Toronto waterfront. By 2000 the theme park project had died and I once more focused on my commercial business; creating miniature sets, creatures, puppets, robots, caricatures and the "odd" piece of fine art.
As a child, perhaps as a response to my pedestrian surroundings I developed an appreciation for the theatrical and the weird. Exposure to Salvador Dali and Heironymus Bosch was truly inspirational. But to paint like them wasn't enough. From my standpoint a surreal painter goes to other worlds of deep truth and returns with images of what he sees. On the other hand I as a sculptor returns from those other realms with a piece of tangible magic. As such my art has wide ...

Honours B.A. Political Science, University of Toronto

Carrot Gallery, Toronto, Canada. Aug. 1993 Georgian College, Barrie, Canada. Feb.- Mar. 1991 Gallery 306, Toronto, Canada. July - Aug. 1990 Atelier Ceramique, Toronto, Canada. April - June 1990 Art 54 Gallery in Soho, New York, United States. Dec.-Jan. 1989/90 Exhibition Place, Toronto, Canada. Nov.- Dec. 1989 Solo show: "Stark Raving Sane" The Durham Art Gallery, Durham, Canada. Oct.- Nov. 1989 .North York Public Library, North York, Canada. Oct.1989 - Jan. 1990 Solo show, "Stark Raving Sane" Gallery 306, Toronto, Canada. May 1989 Ogilvy and Mather Advertising, photo display, Toronto, Canada. March 1989 Malvern Public Library, North York, Canada. Nov.- Jan. 1989 Exhibition Place, Toronto, Canada. Nov.-Dec.1988 North York Public Library, North York, Canada. Sept.- Nov. 1988 Gallery 306, Toronto, Canada. Aug.- Sept. 1988 Exhibition Place, Toronto, Canada. Nov.- Dec. 1987 Exhibition Place, Toronto, Canada. Feb. 1985.