SHINY SIDE UP
Robin Donaldson + Robert Gunderman + Thomas Prinz, 2021
Santa Barbara, CA
"He enters an anteroom filled with steam and makes his way to the cardinal, whose attendants hold a muslin shroud in front of him as he disrobes—we see him only as a shadow. Guido tells the cardinal that he’s unhappy, and the cardinal responds, simply, unforgettably: “Why should you be happy? That is not your task. Who told you that we come into the world in order to be happy?” Every shot in this scene, every piece of staging and choreography between camera and actors, is extraordinarily complex. I cannot imagine how difficult it all was to execute. Onscreen, it unfolds so gracefully that it looks like the easiest thing in the world. For me, the audience with the cardinal embodies a remarkable truth about 8½: Fellini made a film about film that could only exist as a film and nothing else—not a piece of music, not a novel, not a poem, not a dance, only as a work of cinema."
- Martin Scorsese, "Il Maestro: Frederico Fellini and the lost magic of cinema", Harper's Magazine, March 2021.
a painter’s painter, a wandering carpenter, and a flatbed materialist
thoughts of the Coelacanth while feet touch dust on the moon
Willie May’s turns his back, the number 24 glides towards a speck of white
the wandering carpenter releases a bucket of paint
a ‘Yogism’ comes to mind…
Albert says, ‘I’ve always been looking for Trouble. I’m just a ‘SURFIN’ bird’ looking for stress.’
a collage of monumental reflections stacked on thoughts of landscape paintings
a Dunce hat writes formula, after formula, after formula, after formula…
enter ‘Grand Prix’
exit ‘Great Escape’
precision and awkwardness
the only way for catching light
easel artists vs flatbed artists
board, frame, pigment, and medium
releases them to the world
mouths, teeth, orchard fruit, birds, numbers, and figures abound
just imagine facing a blank freshly gesso’d canvas
the material is the thing
until it’s not
negate the frame
the perfect wave or painting happens just enough
the Tempietto in little Italy will only display one
you’re a painter’s painter
no push back there
are these paintings?
piecing it together with the materials from various past moments
disposable quality
color and composition can be discussed in painting terms
apologies again for my uniformed opinions
the vocabulary of lines
figure ground, distortion, value washes, lightness of touch
did you always have this confidence?
James Garner enters
landscape as figure
emotional depth
evaluating inaccuracies
I have no business being there
it’s non-hierarchical and everything is alive
when I was a kid
I’d paint people’s houses
to give less of a fuck
the wandering carpenter is a painter’s painter
if you see the ‘blue flag’
Move your ass over!
and ‘keep the shiny side up’
Robin Donaldson + Robert Gunderman + Thomas Prinz, 2021
Santa Barbara, CA
"He enters an anteroom filled with steam and makes his way to the cardinal, whose attendants hold a muslin shroud in front of him as he disrobes—we see him only as a shadow. Guido tells the cardinal that he’s unhappy, and the cardinal responds, simply, unforgettably: “Why should you be happy? That is not your task. Who told you that we come into the world in order to be happy?” Every shot in this scene, every piece of staging and choreography between camera and actors, is extraordinarily complex. I cannot imagine how difficult it all was to execute. Onscreen, it unfolds so gracefully that it looks like the easiest thing in the world. For me, the audience with the cardinal embodies a remarkable truth about 8½: Fellini made a film about film that could only exist as a film and nothing else—not a piece of music, not a novel, not a poem, not a dance, only as a work of cinema."
- Martin Scorsese, "Il Maestro: Frederico Fellini and the lost magic of cinema", Harper's Magazine, March 2021.
a painter’s painter, a wandering carpenter, and a flatbed materialist
thoughts of the Coelacanth while feet touch dust on the moon
Willie May’s turns his back, the number 24 glides towards a speck of white
the wandering carpenter releases a bucket of paint
a ‘Yogism’ comes to mind…
Albert says, ‘I’ve always been looking for Trouble. I’m just a ‘SURFIN’ bird’ looking for stress.’
a collage of monumental reflections stacked on thoughts of landscape paintings
a Dunce hat writes formula, after formula, after formula, after formula…
enter ‘Grand Prix’
exit ‘Great Escape’
precision and awkwardness
the only way for catching light
easel artists vs flatbed artists
board, frame, pigment, and medium
releases them to the world
mouths, teeth, orchard fruit, birds, numbers, and figures abound
just imagine facing a blank freshly gesso’d canvas
the material is the thing
until it’s not
negate the frame
the perfect wave or painting happens just enough
the Tempietto in little Italy will only display one
you’re a painter’s painter
no push back there
are these paintings?
piecing it together with the materials from various past moments
disposable quality
color and composition can be discussed in painting terms
apologies again for my uniformed opinions
the vocabulary of lines
figure ground, distortion, value washes, lightness of touch
did you always have this confidence?
James Garner enters
landscape as figure
emotional depth
evaluating inaccuracies
I have no business being there
it’s non-hierarchical and everything is alive
when I was a kid
I’d paint people’s houses
to give less of a fuck
the wandering carpenter is a painter’s painter
if you see the ‘blue flag’
Move your ass over!
and ‘keep the shiny side up’
Photos Courtesy of Kentaro Yamada
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Photos Courtesy of Robert Gunderman, Robin Donaldson & Thomas Prinz
Compiled Video of Robin Donaldson in Santa Barbara, CA:
Video Courtesy of F. Myles Sciotto
Compiled Video of Robert Gunderman at his ranch in Fillmore, CA:
Video Courtesy of Robert Gunderman
Compiled Video of Thomas Prinz in Santa Barbara, CA:
Video Courtesy of Mike Nesbit
Email conversation between Robin Donaldson, Robert Gunderman, Thomas Prinz, and Mike Nesbit regarding this exhibition:
About the Artists:
A fourth-generation Southern Californian, Robin Donaldson was born and raised within the SoCal surf and skate culture. Before founding ShubinDonaldson, he received a Bachelor’s in Studio Art at UCSB, focusing on painting and printmaking. He then attended the Southern California Institute of Architecture, receiving his Master of Architecture and winning the Henry Adams Medal. During his SCI_Arc studies, Robin began working with Morphosis Architects and served as the Project Architect on the Crawford Residence. In 1990, Donaldson founded ShubinDonaldson Architects. Today he lectures at AIA events, academic institutions, devotes time to AIA advisory boards, and serves on community planning advisory boards across Southern California.
Donaldson’s creative force is at the heart of advancing SD’s design ethos. He leads the firms’ investigations between buildings and topography/landscape integration, representation and drawing sensibilities, and unique fabrication methodologies. His interest in exploring new possibilities for conventional building typologies also includes leading ShubinDonaldson’s research and development efforts.
www.shubindonaldson.com
Robert Gunderman is an artist who lives and works in Fillmore, CA. He studied painting at the Otis College of Art and Design and his work has been exhibited in group shows from Los Angeles to London. Gunderman’s work has also been the subject of numerous solo shows. Gunderman has also engaged with the art world as a curator, director, and gallery founder—of alternative spaces like FOOD HOUSE, Leak, and ACME Gallery.
www.robertgunderman.com
Thomas Prinz is an architect and fine artist based in Omaha, Nebraska. He received a Bachelor of Architecture from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and a Master of Architecture from Southern California Institute of Architecture in Los Angeles. In 1990, Prinz established Arc-Studio to explore the disciplines of art and architecture. He creates works with thoughts of structures as well as paying homage to many past great artists like Giotto. His works are collages, monotype and digital prints on paper.
www.instagram.com/thomasprinz123
A fourth-generation Southern Californian, Robin Donaldson was born and raised within the SoCal surf and skate culture. Before founding ShubinDonaldson, he received a Bachelor’s in Studio Art at UCSB, focusing on painting and printmaking. He then attended the Southern California Institute of Architecture, receiving his Master of Architecture and winning the Henry Adams Medal. During his SCI_Arc studies, Robin began working with Morphosis Architects and served as the Project Architect on the Crawford Residence. In 1990, Donaldson founded ShubinDonaldson Architects. Today he lectures at AIA events, academic institutions, devotes time to AIA advisory boards, and serves on community planning advisory boards across Southern California.
Donaldson’s creative force is at the heart of advancing SD’s design ethos. He leads the firms’ investigations between buildings and topography/landscape integration, representation and drawing sensibilities, and unique fabrication methodologies. His interest in exploring new possibilities for conventional building typologies also includes leading ShubinDonaldson’s research and development efforts.
www.shubindonaldson.com
Robert Gunderman is an artist who lives and works in Fillmore, CA. He studied painting at the Otis College of Art and Design and his work has been exhibited in group shows from Los Angeles to London. Gunderman’s work has also been the subject of numerous solo shows. Gunderman has also engaged with the art world as a curator, director, and gallery founder—of alternative spaces like FOOD HOUSE, Leak, and ACME Gallery.
www.robertgunderman.com
Thomas Prinz is an architect and fine artist based in Omaha, Nebraska. He received a Bachelor of Architecture from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and a Master of Architecture from Southern California Institute of Architecture in Los Angeles. In 1990, Prinz established Arc-Studio to explore the disciplines of art and architecture. He creates works with thoughts of structures as well as paying homage to many past great artists like Giotto. His works are collages, monotype and digital prints on paper.
www.instagram.com/thomasprinz123