Kennesaw State students with an eye for art have the opportunity to view multiple collections at the Zuckerman Museum on the Kennesaw campus, including one series made by a KSU professor available to the public through Dec. 1.
The Class Pictures exhibit at the Zuckerman Museum of Art houses Donald Robson’s “Occupations” series, a portrayal of working men and women from the 1950s.
“They started out as businessmen and women, kind of 1950s . . . characters. The lady down on the farm, aprons, things like that,” Robson said. “The more mundane, the better for me.”
Not all of Robson’s characters have regular jobs. One piece depicts an alligator-wrestler who stands triumphant over the reptile.
“A lot of the figures I picked . . . appear dated in some way,” Robson says.
He used clothing to show a banality or obsolesce associated with the occupations in his series. Robson said that he drew inspiration from historic postcards and journalistic photography for his characters.
Inspired by model trains and figures of railway workers, Robson began the “Occupations” series as an exercise in watercolors three years ago.
“[The figures] are hard to see, which allows me a lot of freedom in the way I present them,” he explained.
The “Occupations” series was first exhibited three years ago at the Kibbee Gallery in Atlanta. Since then, Robson has added to the collection as they joined various exhibitions across the United States. The series now boasts roughly 30 paintings, some of which were created for the Zuckerman exhibit curated by Teresa Bramlette Reeves.
From a young age, Robson knew he wanted to be an artist. He earned his undergraduate degree at the Indiana University of Pennsylvania and his graduate degree at the Edinboro University of Pennsylvania. In 1993, Robson moved to Atlanta to pursue career opportunities.
Robson spoke about the nature of his field, directly addressing the idea that art majors shouldn’t expect to make good money.
“I asked my father, who was an accountant, ‘Do you think I should have gone into something more practical?'” Robson said. “And he said, ‘I went to my job every day. I hated every day of it. Live your life doing the things you love, and you’ll have no regrets.'”
Robson did not set out with the intention of becoming an art professor but rather went to school to become a better artist.
Twenty years into his career, he taught a class at KSU and enjoyed it.
Now a full-time professor, Robson says, “I found that I really, really love teaching. I know a lot of things about art that I just want to share with people.”
Those interested in seeing Robson’s art should visit the Zuckerman Museum in person or online.
