Robin Gianis

Breaking Through, 2020
Repurposed fabric, twine, hand-built ceramic beads, buttons
4 feet x 18 feet x 3 inches

Reflections
In approaching this project, I had to consider that my home is isolated from the street by a very long narrow drive and so I created something I could install by the road in order to be seen. I chose to break out of my usual small-scale ceramic and mixed media work, and felt it was only right to apply some of the restraints that my young art students have had on them sequestered at home, forging around their homes for things from which to make art. I tore into my closets, discovered stashed-away supplies, and came up with something of mixed media that would symbolize to me the concept of breaking through, a gateway moving from one experience to another, emerging on another side. It is a concept of hope – that we will all come through on the other side of this changed, despite some of our profound losses, better people, our eyes more open.

Artist Statement
I have lived in East Hampton for over thirty years. The rich history of the artist’s lives has surrounded me here, coached, cultivated and informed both my art and me. I believe my work is a fusion of environment, experience and my true self. I pay careful attention to details in nature. I have always been drawn to the light, the sky, the water, growing trees, greenery. I am drawn to specific contours, in the water lapping at the sand, the petals of a flower, moss growing on a rock, branches reaching for the sky, different fractals found in nature. I explore arrangements, especially through ceramic and mosaic arts, but also in a variety of media. I was fortunate enough to do my undergraduate studies at Sarah Lawrence College, and University of Michigan in Florence, Italy, both places where I was challenged and inspired early in life. In addition to being an artist, I have been a Visual Art teacher at the Bridgehampton School for students from kindergarten through twelfth grade for almost twenty years. My students are another form of my art, teaching me and rewarding my love for what I do with their amazing responses and creations.

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Robin Gianis
Breaking Through, 2020
Repurposed fabric, twine, hand-built ceramic beads, buttons
4 feet x 18 feet x 3 inches

Robin Gianis
Breaking Through, 2020
Repurposed fabric, twine, hand-built ceramic beads, buttons
4 feet x 18 feet x 3 inches

Robin Gianis
Breaking Through, 2020
Repurposed fabric, twine, hand-built ceramic beads, buttons
4 feet x 18 feet x 3 inches

Biography
Robin Has lived in East Hampton for over thirty years, where she first arrived after graduating from Sarah Lawrence College. Visual Art has always been her main form of expression. After years working with Ina Garten at the Barefoot Contessa Store in East Hampton, she returned to graduate school to become a visual art teacher. There she fell in love with the ceramic arts, teaching them and creating them herself. She has taught at the Bridgehampton School for almost 20 years, and considered her teaching one of the most creative aspects of her life’s work. She promotes alliances with students and local arts organizations such as the Parrish, Guild Hall, LongHouse and the Watermill Center, and has shown her own art locally in gallery and museum venues for over thirty years.