Opening Reception – Robert C. Ellis: Minimalist Works From the 70s

203 Fine Art is pleased to present minimalist artworks by Robert C. Ellis (1923-1979) from the 1970s. Featuring a fine selection of the artist’s mature style, Ellis spent his last decade exploring the interplay of nature in simple forms. These hand-selected artworks arrive at calm compositions suspended in time.

The paintings and works on paper included in this exhibition, from the Spain, Volcano, and Isole series, are influenced by the artist’s travels and come directly from the artist’s estate. These are some of the last creations by the artist before his sudden death in 1979.

Born in Union Point, Texas, in 1923, Robert C. Ellis first began studying art through the University of New Mexico, Taos, at their Summer Field School in 1942. It was here that Andrew Dasburg and Ellis would meet as teacher and student and, soon after, as close friends. While Ellis spent his time studying in formal institutions, it was the artist’s experience living with the Tarahumara Indians of the Sierra Madre, Mexico, that carried the most profound influence over the artist’s career. After two fellowships at the Wurlitzer Foundation in the 1960s, Ellis settled permanently in Taos, New Mexico.