Work in Focus: Robert Rauschenberg Almanac, 1962

Rauschenberg throughout his career has embraced all areas of art, including painting, sculpture, performance art and photography. His individual style could tie him to any one movement but he has been described as bridging the gap between Abstract Expressionism and Pop art. His career has been prolific; collaborating with artists, musicians and choreographers such as John Cage, Merce Cunningham and Trisha Brown on live art and performance.

The artwork of the 1960's that is best known for are his screenprints which bring together images that were taken from a range of sources; using magazines, newspapers and books, but he also began building his own collection of photographic images due to copyright regulations. Often he reused these photographic images over several artworks. These artworks are charged with energy; Almanac made in 1962 being an example. It is engaging; embracing the new techniques of screenprinting and combining these new skills with the gestural marks taken from the abstract expressionist movement. The work takes inspiration from the society around him using images of everyday experiences that for most we take for granted e.g. roadsigns, figures, cars etc.

Robert Rauschenberg, Almanac, 1962, Oil, acrylic and silkscreen on canvas support: 2443 x 1524 mm painting

© Robert Rauschenberg/VAGA, New York and DACS, London 2002