Johnny Robles: Let it Slide

Photography by Tyler Loy on October 20th, 2014 in Culture, Editorials

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Johnny Robles

Miami, FL – October 12, 2014 – When we think of a typical playground the thoughts that come to mind most likely involve children laughing, playing and running around. But, what happens when we use the idea of a playground to revisit the fleeting and intangible world of childhood? Miami born artist, Johnny Robles has recently reignited this conversation with his first gallery solo exhibition, Let It Slide. On Sunday evening, art enthusiasts from near and far made their way to Spinello Projects to get a firsthand look inside Robles’ dangerous playground. Though he has been mostly recognized for his paintings, Robles’ first solo exhibition undoubtedly shows that he can flex his muscle as a sculptor. Robles has created a kind of surrealist playground; a landscape where familiar forms of stimulation (both for learning and recreation) are warped into objects rendered obsolete, dysfunctional, and deflated. The exhibition features works such as a melancholic, exaggerated version of a rubber swing, a seesaw, while in motion, propelling each rider at least five feet from the ground, and a slide that must be accessed by way of a rocky, mountainous form. These objects communicate the presence of risk in play. Robles does not, however, exclude the possibility of hope in his practice. His arrangement of materials and objects, themselves, remind the viewer that the artistic process is one of great regenerative capabilities as each sculpture is, effectively, reborn as something else. Let It Slide will run through November 15th, 2014.

Johnny Robles was gracious enough to take some time to chat with us about his latest show, his progression as an artist and what’s next on his agenda.

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Johnny Robles & Anthony Spinello

WRE: What is the meaning behind the title Let It Slide?

JR: To detach from something or make no big deal over anything and let yourself go. Life is just a moment and we are here for a visit.

WRE: How does this exhibit differ than those you’ve done in the past?

JR: I’ve been given the freedom to work with the architectural space and find a means to adapt my work in ways where it not only functions in a place for displaying art, but rather an altered environment that may seem constructed for the work itself.

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Pogo Stick, 2014

WRE: Which piece are you most excited to present? Why?

JR: I’m very much excited about presenting all of the work. To see them out of the studio together and in a space that is open gives it a new context.

WRE: How did the pieces evolve after you created the first one or did you work on them simultaneously?

JR: I try allowing pieces to evolve at the same rate I evolve without force and driven by nature. At times the idea is formless so I may have to create a number of them in order to capture the moment that feels right to me. In this case making more work at times, simultaneously. If one unfolds more interestingly than the other, then I go along with it.

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Spring Rider (trasparent), 2014

WRE: What mediums and materials were used in this exhibition? Have you worked with them previously?

JR: Wood, concrete, metal and resin are materials I’ve worked with on and off more at home for things non pertinent to art.

WRE: How does danger play into the exhibit?

JR: The exhibit features several pieces of equipment from playscapes that once were no doubt, dangerous. Of course no one enjoys getting hurt but many of us especially children need to grow and learn to take on physical and vital challenges. All of these things teach or have taught us much about gravity or our own strengths and balance, which have been removed from many parks today and substituted for more safe playgrounds that lack risk or whimsy.

WRE: Have you ever played with these themes before?

JR: Yes, similar themes. Although this time I aimed to achieve a space between feeling and form-institution and outside- audience and participate. Memory as something active and not passive. Reversing the state of childhood into adulthood.

Johnny Robles

WRE: What led you to this introspective period that brought up childhood memories?

JR: Curiosity and questioning our existence in a transitory world. Those fleeting moments you may have had, once pass you and understanding that we can always bring them back to mind, so closely that we may relive the memory. This I believe may also pertain to an astral or holographic experience. Removing this memory with all it’s emotions, feelings and senses into the present is the most challenging.

WRE: What can we expect from you in the future in regards to your work?

JR: Interactive public art and more of the unexpected.

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