The Pursuit of Happiness: Robert C. Jackson

Gallery Henoch is pleased to announce Robert C. Jackson’s sixth solo show with the gallery, The Pursuit of Happiness. The exhibition is free and open to the public.

In a series of neatly arranged paintings, lighthearted tableaus coalesce with Jackson’s subtly painted environments that play on nostalgia and current topics. For the artist the pursuit of happiness is one of our inalienable rights and his work is the means by which he explores and connects with people.

Over 15 years ago, Jackson began collecting and stacking antique soda crates on which his vignettes play out. He writes “ I stumbled across my first soda crate and I was in love. Here were bright primary and secondary colors, text with vibrant words, wonderful patinas, all encased in a slice of Americana” Each centrally placed crate is colorfully emblazoned with whimsical words such as Goody, K.C. Love, or Whistle. Jackson’s juxtaposition of objects showcases narratives that invite the viewer to engage with their own memories of growing up.

The artist maintains an active sketchbook; which, like a diary, is where each composition begins and ideas develop until they become realized in installations that are built in the studio. Finding a new set of toys or iconic objects might also inspire a set of drawings but more often Jackson is an idea generator who then finds the right tool or prop to be painted

National exposure includes prominent venues such as the Delaware Center for Contemporary Art, the Butler Art Institute, Evansville Museum of Art, Indiana, the Greenville Museum, the Brandywine River Museum of Art, the Tullman Collection, the Philbrook Museum, the South Dakota Museum of Art, the Islip Art Museum, and the Hunter Museum. To date Jackson has been the focus of thirty-six solo shows and over 60 group shows.