Texas Triangle Catalogue

Roger Colombik was born on June 10, 1961 in Chicago, IL. He received his BFA from University of Illinois-Champaign in 1984, his MFA from Southern Illinois University-Carbondale in 1987. He navigates a diverse artistic practice that embraces a passion for sculptural objects and socially engaged projects. As a Fulbright Scholar to Republic of Georgia in 2003 his work focused on the relationship between cultural identity and the transition towards civil society.

CEC Artslink supported his community-based projects in Armenia and Republic of Georgia. He has also collaborated with young artists on public art projects in Burma and Romania. He lives in the Texas Hill Country with his wife and artistic collaborator, Jerolyn. Together they have composed several outdoor commissioned sculptures in Texas. Roger teaches sculpture at Texas State University.

ROGER COLOMBIK The West Texas Triangle Featured Artist 2016

Every beloved object is the center of a garden of paradise.

This poetic musing by Novalis, an 18th C. German writer is taped to the wall in my studio. It’s a timeless reminder of the sculptural ideal, where the material and spiritual worlds converge, where the physical and the metaphysical can wrestle in our imagination. Peregrination, peripatetic and migratory aptly describes my studio practice. My sculptures are often composed in series with the initial sparks coming in the form of cardboard models, chalk drawings on the floor and wax maquettes. These preliminary studies are then typically set-aside (or simply ignored) as time and memory engage in their arcane magic. Could be days, could be years before ideas reemerge with fresh insights and new iterations. Concepts are elastic, prone to the same transmutable nature as the materials employed.

The sculptures featured in the West Texas Triangle exhibitions are from several bodies of work. Each of the five venues is presenting a distinct series and the visual and conceptual threads are outlined in the following pages. As I reexamine the foundations, influences and directions that a life in the arts has afforded me, the rare moment of clarity occurs. And Novalis’ declaration reveals itself in a new sculptural reality. My sincere gratitude to all the museum directors for the opportunity to share my garden of paradise with their communities.

ELLEN NOËL ART MUSEUM OF THE PERMIAN BASIN | ODESSA, TEXAS

July 1 - September 21, 2016

FROM THE ARTIST

How long does tomorrow last?

An eternity and a day.

-Theo Angelopoulos

A vessel. The quite nature of the form and the meditative process of composing these works provide me with the opportunity to slow down. To remove myself, from everything, completely adrift in form and space and all that is timeless. The vessels are created in wax and worked slowly over a number of days. The tools are basic and include butter knives, spoons and a small propane torch. After thirty-five years of foundry work I continue to be enthralled by the casting process. Pouring bronze and breaking the shell to release the sculpture is always a return to the discoveries of childhood. The Vessel Series has expanded over the years to include large-scale sculptural fountains composed in collaboration with Jerolyn BahmColombik for several public commissions in Texas.

As the molten bronze fills the silica mold, the vessel glows for a moment before the metal solidifies—breaking the shell to release.

The Vessel Series has expanded over the years to include large-scale sculptural fountains and intimate works that combine imagery from other visual explorations. Recent small works include fabricating the vessels from sheet bronze. Though this process is loud and physically aggressive, there is a new rhythm to behold. As the form winds upon itself to create the lip and as the final welds are blended, a calm descends, in the sculpture and myself.

Vessel Triptych, 2007, bronze, stone, steel, 48 x 60 x 12 in. Courtesy of the artist.

This summer, Roger Colombik’s work can be found in the Museum’s The George and Milly Rhodus Sculpure & Sensory Garden. His work joins other pieces from the Museum’s permanent collection including work by Jesus Moroles and Danville Chadbourne. This year, the Museum will be displaying pieces from Colombik’s Vessel Series. He states that:

“The vessels are an ongoing series of works that I return to every few years, particularly when I am in need of immersing myself in the quiet reflection that the imagery and the construction of the imagery provides.”

Colombik’s sculptures work well within the Museum’s garden combining the hardness of the stone and bronze materials with the surrounding tranquil setting. The Vessel series has been exhibited at places such as the San Antonio Botanical Garden and the Lady Bird Johnson Wildlife Center.

Daniel Zies, Curator

Ellen Noël Art Museum of the Permian Basin Tuesday

Odessa, TX 79761

www.noelartmuseum.org

The Ellen Noël Art Museum of the Permian Basin is the culmination of years of grass roots fundraising efforts by the citizens of Odessa to build a fine arts museum. Originally opened in 1985 as the Art Institute for the Permian Basin, the Museum was renamed in its tenth year to honor the leadership and philanthropy of Mrs. Ellen W. Noël. Known for its active exhibition schedule and outstanding education programing, the Ellen Noël Art Museum is accredited by the American Association of Museums and it part of the Smithsonian Institution Affiliations Program.

Vessel I: 2006, 1996, bronze, stone, 65 x 22 x 22 in. Courtesy of the artist.

Vessel I: 2011, 2011, bronze, stone, steel, 42 x 12 x 12 in. Courtesy of the artist.

THE GRACE MUSEUM | ABILENE, TEXAS

More Life in a Time Without Boundaries

April 19 - August 13, 2016

FROM THE ARTIST

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises and helps people to survive and rebuild their lives through their resettlement program. Beginning in 2004, nearly one thousand refugees and asylees have resettled in Abilene, discovering a welcome and safe environment to rebuild their lives. The majority of people arrive from Democratic Republic of Congo, Burundi, Bhutan, Iraq, and Cuba. Most have suffered under varying conditions of extreme poverty, cultural isolation and governmentsanctioned violence. At the invitation of the Grace Museum and working in collaboration with Susanna Lubanga, Director of the IRC-Abilene Office, Jerolyn Bahm-Colombik and I began spending time in this community. To engage with these families is to enter a realm where personal histories are inextricably linked with global crises and the simple dreams that parents have for their children. Our work addresses these conflicting zones of human nature through a diverse range of artistic practices. The exhibition is meant to serve as a portal into their lives. Empowering the children in this community through visual literacy and the understanding that their families are now an intrinsic part of the Abilene cultural community is essential.

The title of the exhibition, More Life in a Time Without Boundaries is drawn from Harold Bloom’s use of the Yahwistic blessing in seeking a transcendent life through learning, generosity of spirit and freedom. For those who have suffered greatly and crossed many borders to engage a new world in Abilene the blessing carries a much greater and profound sense of possibility.

Elegy for Aleppo, 2014, bronze, aluminum, 18 x 18 x 6 in. Courtesy of the artist.

Portrait of Fabiola & Bikole, 2016, silk print, hardware, 72 x 156 in. Courtesy of the artist.

MUSEUM OF THE SOUTHWEST | MIDLAND, TEXAS

Every Beloved Object is the Center of a Garden Paradise

July 8 – September 18, 2016

FROM THE ARTIST

The world is too much with us…

-Wordsworth

The Poetry Series has its origins in the confluence of a few momentous changes in my life – marriage, building a home on our land and a growing passion for reading. Domesticity initiated an exploration of all things familial with a new vocabulary of visual metaphors. Chairs, tables, books, bookcases, trees, household pets and plants filled the studio. A constant companion during this time was Bill Moyer’s The Language of Life. Heavily dog-eared, margin-annotated, highlighted and brimming with scraps of notes, this book in many ways functioned as a sketchbook and launched my love of poetry. I became interested in creating visual environments that soften the flight of time for the viewer. Sculptures became large-scale tableaus, providing atmospheres where reading and quiet reflection are possible in frenetic urban environments. The viewer is encouraged to step up into the work, to bring oneself to the table. The maquettes function as guides, not blueprints as I explore the symbiotic relationship between the viewer and the sculpture. The exhibition also features Land Drawings, a series of small works originally conceived as a playful engagement with my voluminous piles of stone and bronze scraps. The project rapidly developed into a near obsessive exploration of land formations and material history.

Domestic Life #3, 1996, bronze, 6 x 9 x 5 in. Courtesy of the artist.

The maquettes were crucial for exploring this concept, to understand the relationship between the viewer and the sculpture. These small works serve as guides, not blueprints. Over the years I have returned to this series with fresh eyes and renewed interest. A bronze casting of an antique office chair continues to inspire new directions. Every few months I roll it out into the center of the studio, reminding myself that poetry is the breath of memory, and sculpture is that memory in time and space.

Tuesday - Saturday 10 am - 5 pm | Sunday 2 pm - 5 pm

432.683.2882

1705 Missouri Ave.

Midland, Texas 79701

www.museumsw.org

The Museum of the Southwest inspires discovery, interaction and exploration of art, science, culture and history, enriching the lives of people of all ages. We believe in the power of these disciplines to ignite the imagination, stimulate thought and provide enjoyment through our collections, exhibitions, programs and events.

Founded in 1965, opened in 1966 and in the historic Turner Mansion since 1968, the Museum of the Southwest has spent over fifty years serving the Midland and West Texas communities by producing exhibitions, programs and events about science, art, astronomy, archaeology, history and culture. Accredited by the American Alliance of Museums since 1992, the Museum of the Southwest is also a member of the Mountain-Plains Museums Association, the Texas Association of Museums, the West Texas Triangle, the Arts Council of Midland and the Midland Chamber of Commerce.

Land Drawings (Pecos Red), 2011, bronze, steel, stone, 20 x 24 x 4 in. Courtesy of the artist.

The Poetry Series 2: 2015, 2015, bronze, 12 x 8 x 6 in. Courtesy of the artist.

OLD JAIL ART CENTER | ALBANY, TEXAS

June 4 - August 13, 2016

FROM THE ARTIST

As progress progresses, the world can slip away. It’s progress if you can keep the world from slipping away.

-Graham Swift, Waterland

During graduate school, my professor Thomas Walsh handed me a book about the discovery and reconstruction of King Cheops funerary barge. The combination of mythology and ritual with the most exquisite craftsmanship sent me along a sculptural journey that continues to this day. The symbolic form of the vessel coupled with its many varied cultural and technical manifestations over the centuries is a never-ended resource of influence and inspiration. As with my other bodies of work, every few years I return to this subject matter with a renewed interest and fresh source material from my own peregrinations. Composing these works is a process of integrating memory and history with a passion for building new versions of an ancient narrative.

Enguri River, 2011, bronze, aluminum, stone, gold leaf, 75 x 84 x 24 in. Courtesy of the artist.

Tuesday - Saturday 10 am - 5 pm

325.762.2269

201 South 2nd Street

Albany, Texas 76430

www.theojac.org

The Old Jail Art Center presents a singular work by Roger Colombik that is part of an ongoing series the artist has pursued over his career. Fascinated by ancient funerary barges, Colombik’s interest lies in the combination of myth and ritual coupled with exquisite craftsmanship. The artist revisits the series every few years as he gains new insights and source material based on his journeys.

This particular work, titled Enguri River Dream (2011), is based on an actual river that divides the Republic of Georgia from the autonomous Republic of Abkhazia. Colombik states, “While working in the Republic of Georgia, I met with several individuals who suffered greatly from the civil wars that erupted in the region in the 1990’s. For this community of war refugees currently living in Republic of Georgia, the Enguri River is an intractable division separating a former life of ‘normalcy’ from their current circumstances of economic hardship and social stigmatization. Composing these works is a process of integrating memory and history with a passion for investigating new iterations of an ancient form.”

Interestingly, while Enguri River is on view, the OJAC is presenting works that are in direct response to another civil war in Civil War Era Drawings from the Becker Collection. The idea of boundaries—both physical and political—coupled with the harsh realities of conflict, are tangible in all of these works.

- Patrick Kelly, Director, Old Jail Art Center

The Old Jail Art Center opened in 1980 with four small galleries that once served as the first permanent jail built in Shackelford County, Texas (1878). The museum’s core collection has grown from the private collections of four Albany natives and now numbers over 2,200 works of art. The largest area comprises modern drawings, paintings, prints, and sculpture by such well-known Americans as John Marin, Charles Demuth, Alexander Calder, and European artists Amedeo Modigliani, Paul Klee, Pablo Picasso, and Pierre-Auguste Renoir. In addition, the collection contains a sizable number of works by contemporary Texas artists; smaller regional collections of the Fort Worth Circle (1945-1955) and Taos Modernists (1945-1979); an impressive Asian Art Collection, principally ancient Chinese tomb figures; and an equally stellar Pre-Columbian Collection. Currently, the OJAC actively collects and showcases the work of Texas artists with temporary exhibitions related to the permanent collection.

Outdoor works of various media are installed in the sculpture courtyard and throughout the museum’s grounds. The museum also houses the Green Art Research Library with a broad collection of art books and the Robert E. Nail Jr. Archives containing regional history and artists’ papers. The OJAC’s overall aim is to serve as an educational and cultural center focused on the visual arts through collections, exhibitions, programs, and regional history resources.

Enguri River, 2011, bronze, aluminum, stone, gold leaf, 75 x 84 x 24 in. Courtesy of the artist.

SAN ANGELO MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS | SAN ANGELO, TEXAS

To Soften the Flight of Time

July 8 - September 4, 2016

FROM THE ARTIST

Absence/Presence

Picture if you will an apocryphal scene from the Victorian age. Our protagonist has returned home after his arduous voyage and adventurous romp across enchanted lands. He stands before the warmth of family, a highball in one hand, the other arm resting on the fireplace mantle; he waxes poetic on time and space.

Ahhh Elizabeth. What can I say?

When I am at home I dream of the road.

When I am on the road I dream of home.

This picaresque moment is the backdrop for a timeless drama in which absence and presence are dueling protagonists – pulling, clawing and scheming for my attention.

How else to explain a crack in consciousness while in the ecstatic throes of grandfatherhood, swinging a three-year-old goddess through the breaking waves of the Pacific, a moment I’ve anticipated for months and I’m suddenly walking along a different and very distant shore, listening to tales of revolution and Soviet conspiracies.

And the reverse; Walking the steps of renunciation during the full moon festival, expiating sins and corporal folly, completely in the moment, cradled in the kindness of thousands and the visual splendor of Shwedagon. And then I’m gone, transported to genuine enlightenment at home on the porch swing with Jerry’s laughter and the rapture of domesticity. Only the linguistic shrieks of women hawking Buddhist Enlightenment Kitsch can bring me back to the present and gilded moment. Presence or absence. Or both states at once. Lost in the chasm between here and there.

More Time in a Life without Boundaries: Tradescantia Pallida #1 (studio view), 2016. bronze, stainless steel. 24 x 108 x 42 in. Courtesy of the artist.

Absence/Presence (The Journals), 2014. Bronze, aluminum. 12 x 156 x 8 in. Courtesy of the artist.

In 2004, Roger Colombik installed a beautiful, monumental work on our rooftop terrace, an image of which now appears on the homepage of his website and as the logo of his studio. The display of this work at SAMFA was long before my time, but it’s so indelibly part of the institutional memory here that it is simply referred to as “the boat” and even those of us who came to work here after it was gone can picture it in our minds. Perhaps that’s appropriate considering that Colombik’s sculpture focuses so much on the intricate relationship between memory and history, and the works we are exhibiting this summer are about “softening the flight of time.” The works are installation pieces, displayed in a way that interacts meaningfully with our gallery space, and in a way that will make them unique here--different from how they will look and be perceived anywhere else. These two works will also become part of our institutional memory, as the artist’s memories that they reference are part of the artwork.

- Laura Romer Huckaby, Collections Manager, San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts

The San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts opened in 1985, originally located in the historic 1864 Quartermaster Building at Fort Concho National Historic Landmark. SAMFA’s present facility was opened in 1999, and the distinctive architecture has received international acclaim. The mission of the San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts--through its collections, exhibitions, and programs—is to serve the general public in San Angelo, Texas, the rural communities of the Concho Valley, and the state of Texas. SAMFA has been nationally recognized for its dedication to the community, and was presented with the National Museum Service Award in 2004.

Tuesday - Saturday 10 am - 4 pm | Sunday 1 pm - 4 pm

325.653.3333

1 Love Street

San Angelo, Texas 76903

www.samfa.org

The overall exhibit program encompasses all media, cultures and time periods, with a major exhibit annually focusing on the ceramic arts. And in 2012, SAMFA organized and hosted the first annual Salmon Sculpture Competition, a juried exhibition of outdoor sculpture. Among the Permanent Collection’s areas of concentration, the San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts has established a distinguished collection of contemporary American ceramics, which has expanded to include ceramics from Europe, Canada, and Asia. Other focus areas of the collection include early and contemporary Texas art, and Spanish Colonial and Mexican religious art.

ROGER COLOMBIK Resume

SELECTED EXHIBITION HISTORY

COMMISSIONS/PUBLIC ART & COMMUNITY PROJECTS

2015-6 More Life in a Time Without Boundaries, Grace Museum, Abilene, TX, in coordination with International Rescue Committee (Collaboration with Jerolyn Bahm-Colombik)

2014 Miller Library, Beaumont, TX (Collaboration with Jerolyn Bahm-Colombik)

2012 Dem Dritten Das Brot!, Arthouse Wolfsberg/Garana, Garana, Romania

A Balance in Time, University Advancement Center, Texas State University, San Marcos, TX

Water Tales, LBJ Student Center, Texas State University, San Marcos, TX, (Collaboration with Jerolyn Bahm-Colombik)

2010 Austin Art in Public Places, 2nd Street Re-Development, (Collaboration with Jerolyn Bahm-Colombik), Austin, TX

State Needs, A Public Intervention in Yerevan Armenia, (Collaboration with Jerolyn Bahm-Colombik, Vahe Budumyan, Gohar Karapetyan, David Nubaryan)

2009 San Marcos Convention Center/Embassy Suites Hotel Lobby, (Collaboration with Jerolyn Bahm-Colombik) San Marcos, TX

2008 New Mexico Arts, Santa Fe, NM

2006 Singeorz-Bai, Romania and the Muzeu de Arta Comparata: large vinyl banners (photographic and text) installed throughout the village to address issues of emigration and cultural heritage (Collaboration with Sergui Lupse)

McCoy Business Administration Building, Texas State University, San Marcos, TX

2005 Tbilisi, Republic of Georgia, large vinyl banners (photographic/text) installed throughout the city to address issues of cultural identity and revolution (Collaboration with David Janiashvili, and Ketevan Kintsurashvili)

2001-3 Austin Art in Public Places, Combined Emergency 911 Response Center, Austin, TX (Collaboration with Jerolyn Bahm-Colombik and Winterrowd Assoc. Landscape Architects)

GRANTS/AWARDS:

2013 Grant Award for Developmental Leave, Texas State University, Burma

2011 Research Enhancement Grant, Texas State University, Ecuador

2010 CEC Artslink, Project on Displacement in Armenia

2007 San Marcos Arts Commission, San Marcos, TX, Grant for Public Art Program

2006 Research Enhancement Grant, Texas State University, Romania

2005 CEC Artslink, Project in Republic of Georgia Research Enhancement Grant, Texas State University, Republic of Georgia

2003 Fulbright Scholar, Tbilisi, Republic of Georgia

2002 San Marcos Arts Commission, San Marcos, TX, Community public project & exhibition

2001 Research Enhancement Grant, Texas State University, Project in the Balkans

EXHIBITIONS

2016 West Texas Triangle

Grace Museum, Abilene, TX (Collaboration w/Jerolyn Bahm-Colombik)

San Angelo Museum of Art, San Angelo, TX (solo exhibition)

Museum of the Southwest, Midland, TX (solo exhibition)

Old Jail Art Center, Albany, TX (solo exhibition)

Ellen Noel Museum, Odessa, TX (solo exhibition)

Inaugural Exhibition, Sculpture Fields at Montague Park, Chattanooga, TN

2015 Disruption, Group Exhibition, Grounds For Sculpture, Hamilton, NJ

Biennial Roadshow - Venice, (One night event on the Via Garibaldi) Venice, Italy

Biennial 600, Amarillo Museum of Art, Amarillo, TX

12th International Photo Festival”, Le Pont Organization, Aleppo, Syria

2014 Absence/Presence, (solo exhibition), FLEX Gallery, Texas State University, San Marcos, TX

29th St. Serenade-The Burma Project, Texas State University, San Marcos, TX

Group Exhibition of Texas Sculpture Group, Dougherty Art Center, Austin, TX

Group Exhibition of Texas Sculpture Group, Lawndale, Art Center, Houston, TX

Group Exhibition, Robert Hughes Gallery, San Antonio, TX

Selections from Lawndale, Islander Gallery, Corpus Christi, TX

2013 Under the Rotunda, Texas State Capital, Curated by Diana Roberts, Austin, TX Group Exhibition, Robert Hughes Gallery, San Antonio, TX in DEPTH, Art Car Museum, Texas Sculpture Group Member Exhibition, Houston, TX

Summoned: Cast Metal Sculpture, K Space Gallery, Corpus Christi, TX Vessels, San Antonio Botanical Gardens, San Antonio, TX

2012 11th International Photo Festiva”, Le Pont Organization, Aleppo, Syria

“Arthouse Garana/Wolfsberg, Garana/Wolfsberg, Romania

“Fundatia Interart Triade”, Timisoara, Romania

“Scale-A Gathering of Sculptors”, Blue Star Contemporary Art, San Antonio, TX

“Espoused”, Art Museum of Southeast Texas, Beaumont, TX

2011 “Texas Sculpture Group” Stars of Austin Gallery, Austin-Bergstrom Int’l Airport, Austin, TX “Solid Substance, Texas Sculpture Group”, Curator: Catherine Anspon, G Gallery, Houston, TX

”The Texas Chair Project,” Ohio Craft Museum, Columbus, Ohio Small Works (solo exhibition), Dougherty Art Center, Austin, TX

To Make Laughter From Tears (solo exhibition) Dougherty Art Center, Austin, TX

Art in the Garden, Curated by Lily Wei, San Antonio Botanical Gardens, San Antonio, TX

2009 Here, There & Everywhere, TransCultural Exchange Conference Boston, MA

(video collaboration with Romanian artist Sergiu Lupse)

Spiezer Collection, Rockford Museum of Art, Rockford, IL

Cultural Identity in Georgia(photography and text), Chapel Hill Town Hall, Chapel Hill, NC

Texas Chair Project (curated by Damian Priour), Austin Museum of Art, Austin, TX

Texas Sculpture Roundup, Beeville Art Museum, Beeville, TX

Some Waves Spark Stone, solo sculpture exhibition for the City of Waco, TX

2008 The Chair Project, Austin Museum of Art, Austin, TX

Narratives-Four Photographers, University of Dallas, Irving, TX

Reforming US: Immigration Through Art, Loyola University, Chicago, IL

Sculpture Invitational, Kemp Center For the Arts, Wichita Falls, TX

Sculpture in the Garden, Lady Bird Wildflower Garden, Austin, TX

2007 Ethereal Terrains, Solo Exhibition, Gallery Nord, San Antonio, TX

Art Five Invitational, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM

City Hall 2007, Austin City Hall, Austin, TX

Texas Sculpture Uprising, St. Paul’s Square, San Antonio, TX

FotoSeptiembre-Children in Georgia & Romania, San Antonio Photo Festival