Contemporary Canadian artist Robert Fones works in a variety of media, including sculpture, painting, photo-installation, and watercolour. In high school in London, Ontario, he attended weekend art workshops, where he met instructor Greg Curnoe, who became the primary inspiration for Fones’ artistic career. In 1973, he became a founding member of London’s Forest City Gallery. He later moved to Toronto, where he lives and works today.
Often called an archaeologist of the present, Fones uses cartography, language, typography, and geology in his works. He explores topics such as history and past civilizations, the land, industrial production, and manufactured objects. Egyptian Expanded g/Lions Mane 1990 is a prime example of these combinations of themes, and the shaped canvases and use of text also recall the influence of Greg Curnoe.
