Sight Lines is Robin Gowen’s 11th solo show with Sullivan Goss. She has been showing at Sullivan Goss for more than twenty years, longer than any other artist in the Gallery’s program. In that time, we have watched her vision morph, mature, and build upon itself. But we also see her coming back to some of the same subjects time and again; some because they are constantly in her line of sight and others because by revisiting a place repeatedly, she can create a record of how the world changes over time depending on the weather, the season, and her own advancing skills and sensibilities.

This new crop of paintings finds that she has set her sights on vistas both near and far. The ocean, both here and on the East coast, makes a rare and welcome appearance for one. Prone to a hot color palette, Robin’s ocean paintings bring a misting of coastal coolness to the group. Meanwhile, a rich trove of ribbony paintings of the area’s hills in this new exhibition will give seasoned lovers of Robin Gowen’s art plenty of reasons to celebrate. They are the perfect muse to inspire her love of high key color and bold contrast.

Owing to this last year's stay at home orders, Robin focused on what was immediate and essential, even though the hills were beckoning. A group of still life paintings are reminiscent of the Dutch masters where dark backgrounds and fine execution elevate every-day items into aesthetic treats. Staying at home pushed Robin to focus more closely - finding the landscapes (or counter-scapes, if you will) in the kitchen rather than on the roadside. Her garden and the surrounding few blocks of her neighborhood were also observed more carefully than they would have been in a normal year of trips out into the field.