Robert Gober

Robert Gober is an American sculptor known for his work that frequently incorporates domestic and familiar objects.

Biography of Robert Gober

Robert Gober was born in 1954 in Wallingford, USA. He studied literature and fine art at Middlebury College in Vermont and the Tyler School of Art in Rome.

In 1976, Gober settled in New York, where he initially worked as a carpenter, making stretchers for artists and renovating lofts. For five years, he also served as an assistant to the painter Elizabeth Murray.

He was awarded The Larry Aldrich Foundation Award in 1996, the Skowhegan Medal for Sculpture in 1999, and the Archives of American Art Medal in 2015.

He has participated in numerous international exhibitions, including five Whitney Biennials and five Venice Biennales. Notably, he represented the United States at the 2001 Venice Biennale. In 2014, the Museum of Modern Art in New York held a large-scale survey of his work.

Recent solo exhibitions include "Cows at a Pond. Art, Objects and Ephemera" at Demisch Danant in New York (2023), "Collection Presentation" at  Kunstmuseum Basel (2023), and "Shut up." "No. You shut up." at Matthew Marks Gallery in New York (2021). Additionally, Gober's works have been featured in numerous group shows held at various galleries and museums worldwide, including Museum Brandhorst in Munich, Newchild Gallery in Antwerp, Parkett Exhibition Space in Zurich, Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, The FLAG Art Foundation in New York, and many more.

Currently, the artist lives and works in New York. 

Robert Gober's Art Style

Since the 1970s, the artist has explored themes of sexuality, religion, and politics through his meticulously handcrafted work. In Gober's art, even the most commonplace objects—a shoe, a sink, a bag of cat litter—carry multiple meanings and implications. Central to his practice is the physical act of creation. What might initially seem like a dented can of ordinary house paint, for example, could actually be a hand-painted sculpture made of solid lead crystal.

While his work addresses universal themes of loss and longing, it is deeply informed by his personal experiences, infusing each piece with an acute sense of intimacy. Among his most renowned works are his immersive installations. The first of these, created in 1992 at the Dia Center for the Arts in New York, featured a barred window set high in a wall, bundles of hand-printed newspapers, and sculptures of sinks complete with running water, among other elements.