Robert Kushner

Robert Kushner (b. 1949, Pasadena) is a painter, performance artist, and central figure in the Pattern and Decoration movement, which emerged in New York in the mid-1970s as a deliberate counter to the austerity of Minimalism and Conceptual art. His practice brings together ornament, fabric, figuration, eroticism, and decorative surface, drawing on Persian miniature painting, Islamic tile work, Japanese textiles, and Western art history.

Kushner has exhibited at Holly Solomon Gallery, New York; Galerie Daniel Templon, Paris; the Philadelphia Museum of Art; and major institutions internationally. His work was included in the landmark Pattern and Decoration exhibitions of the late 1970s and early 1980s.

This collection gathers exhibition invitations, catalogues, and printed matter relating to Kushner’s practice.

  • Robert Kushner, 'The dance, the kiss,...', exhibition invitation recto. Galerie Daniel Templon, Paris, 1979. Black-and-white reproduction of a large-scale drawing or print: two figures in close embrace, faces almost touching in a near-kiss. The woman on the left has wavy hair and closed eyes; the man on the right wears a suit and tie, head tilted toward her. Her dress or top is rendered with dense teardrop or scale-like patterning across the bodice and shoulders. Bold, fluid black line work on white ground, Robert Kushner, 'The dance, the kiss,...', exhibition invitation verso. Galerie Daniel Templon, Paris, 1979. Cream card. Header in bold sans-serif caps: 'DANIEL TEMPLON / 30, rue Beaubourg. Paris 3. 272.14.10'. Below in bold: 'ROBERT KUSHNER'. Below in italic: '"The dance, the kiss,..."'. Exhibition dates in French: 'du 31 mars au 3 mai 1979 / vernissage le samedi 31 mars de 10 h à 19 h'. Plain typographic layout on cream stock. Light age toning and minor surface marks.

    Robert Kushner — “The dance, the kiss,…”

    Robert Kushner — “The dance, the kiss,…”