January 15, 1985: Robert Fichter: Photographs and Other Works, 1962-1984, an exhibition of works in a variety of media, although primarily photographic, will be on view at The Brooklyn Museum from March 15 through May 13, 1985.
Robert Fichter is an artist who does not fit conveniently into any one category. Primarily a photographer, he has never allowed himself to be constricted by the traditional limits of the medium. Instead, he has adapted a fresh and experimental approach by combining photography, painting, drawing, printmaking and montage. The exhibition will include works ranging from traditional reportorial photographs, altered (over-painted) photographs, and multiple exposures, to etchings and paintings on paper with no photographic base.
Throughout this seeming diversity, however, run a number of consistent threads: a deep concern with the ecology of the planet which, in the later work, evolves into strong statements against nuclear war; an on-going wry commentary on the history of photography; an outraged political sensibility which never loses its absurdist sense of humor; and a southern gothic viewpoint which allies him to the tradition established in American literature by such writers as William Faulkner and Flannery O’Connor.
The early photomontages show a decided kinship with the work of Robert Rauschenberg, while the etchings and paintings reveal such diverse influences as Saul Steinberg and the Belgian artist James Ensor. The most recent body of work consists of large-scale composed color photographs with recurring “characters” such as Bones (a memento mori), Jonah (a stuffed bass), and Baby Gene Pool.
This exhibition was organized by and is circulated under the auspices of the International Museum of Photography at George Eastman House.
Brooklyn Museum Archives. Records of the Department of Public Information. Press releases, 1971 - 1988. 1985, 004.
