Many of the works, especially the heads are conceived as self-portraits, however Robinson perceives the figures as being of someone else. A character from a novel that has some of the author’s traits but is not the author at all. There is a performative element of the content of the pictures, something simple like a mask, a box, a balloon and the chance meeting of these objects with the portrait, the head Robinson describes as a strange alchemy.
Layered with art historical references- mostly images from the Prado museum, whose paintings feel like members of the Robinson psychological family.
“I feel like I can inhabit the rooms of Velazquez, Goya, Zurbaran because I have lived and worked there in residence.”
Robinson’s palette is essentially in raw umber and white - the grisaille technique used from the 15th century onwards to lay out initial compositions using cheap earth tones and white to give a grey tonal image. Seeing paintings as propositions for something else. Performance, dreams or narratives remain in this preliminary colouring and underscore.
“The Paint is called Raw Umber literally the colour of earth it is neither hot nor cold and across the paintings it changes in a very mysterious way that after 10 years of solely using this colour I am beginning to understand.”