Bob Horan

“look at the balance of man, nature, joy, and death.”

Bob's art emphasizes contrast. From colors used to subject matter, evoking imagery of classic Americana and often featuring recurring characters and landscapes. His subjects seem to move through worlds both familiar, yet unsettling at times. Challenging us to think more deeply about where we, as Americans, have come from, while also questioning whether our perception and acceptance of the weirdness that surrounds us is keeping us from an openness to new possibilities.

Drawing inspiration from artists such as Ralph Steadman, Mark Maggiori, and Francis Bacon, as well as a love of classic “Spaghetti Westerns”. With Steadman’s work, there is an undercurrent of restlessness and foreboding to which he adds bright, almost cheery splats of color. And his shared love of the romanticized southwest echoes Maggiori, while also alluding to themes of a more scientific, pragmatic view of the surrounding world ala Bacon.

If you find yourself inspired by Horan’s work, take some of his advice and ask yourself if you are absorbing art in forms that you don’t practice in. If there’s something you find yourself inspired by, get behind the scenes. Look at it from the perspective of not only similar two dimensional mediums, but maybe films, mixed media, and audio symphonies.