Robert Ikin, born in Hobart in 1940, is a sculptor, ceramicist and mixed media artist, working and living in North-Eastern Tasmania. Robert has exhibited widely throughout that State and is represented many public collections in Tasmania, these include QVMAG, Devonport Regional Gallery, University of Tas Collection, Hobart and the Tasmanian Government's Art for Public Buildings Scheme.

He has exhibited major works at the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery in Hobart and The Queen Victoria Museum in Launceston with his installation "No Poetry" a mixed media work. Using mainly found objects, he loosely plotted 8 months from January 1st to Aug 6th presenting the work on the anniversary of Hiroshima Day 1995. The work was re-created in 2001 and subsequently in 2013 as moving sound and image piece. 

His ceramics are strangely collectable, with a loyal number of collectors taking most of his limited production of non-functional vessels, boxed works, tiles and wall-pieces. 

He installed a huge ceramic work entitled "Mandala" 8.5 metres in diameter, commissioned by the Tasmanian Government in 2000. The piece comprised of 888 hand-made tiles, each hand-incised and hand-decorated. His ceramic works have been in touring and survey shows to Indonesia, and exhibited in Darwin, Canberra, Melbourne, Hobart and Launceston

He was in Paris in 2008 at the Cite des Arts at the Rosamund McCulloch studios,

and over the past five years has participated in exhibitions in the Netherlands including the Tasmanie Project in Amsterdam in 2007, pARTners KEG, Schijndel in 2010, the Museum allen Tijden 2012, all in the Netherlands.

He has been involved in many site-specific sculpture projects at amazing sites, twice at Roaring Beach on Tasman Peninsula, the Mt. Wellington Sculpture Trail, Jackeys Marsh Sculpture Trail, Shadows on the Water on the Upper Esk in N.E. Tasmania and The National Rose Garden at Woolmers, all in Tasmania. During the past ten years he has had five solo shows and participated in fifteen mixed exhibits.

His most recent solo exhibition, in 2013, titled "Interactions" was at Poimena Gallery where he had just completed an Artist-in-Residency, this show included a video documentation of "Solstice to Solstice"  a piece based on daily divinations from winter solstice to summer solstice 2012, also new ceramics and digital works.

all works by Robert Ikin. Images Robert Ikin 2017

Born Hobart, Tasmania

1980 - Post Grad. Fine Arts, University of Tasmania.

SELECTED GROUP SHOWS 

1994 - VESSEL AS SUBJECT - eight invited ceramicists, touring Indonesia, 1994/1995

1998 - SCULPTURE BY THE SEA-  "If Six Were Nine" Constructed over seven days' Oct./Nov. Roaring Beach, Tas.

2001 - SCULPTURE BY THE SEA- "Mandalahouse" Seven days at Roaring Beach, Tas

2001 - EPHEMERAL SCULPTURE PROJECT- "Down in the Flood" Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery.

2002 - MT. WELLINGTON SCULPTURE TRAIL- "dejeuner sur l'herbe" Mountain Festival, Hobart, Tas. March 2002. 

2002 - RADIANCE- "The World is Waiting For a Sunrise"  Fabricated window screens installed at  Holy Trinity Church,, Launceston, Tas.

2002 - ALUMNI EXHIBITION- "Unbearable Lightness of Being" Official opening exhibition, Academy of the Arts, Uni. of Tasmania  Launceston.

2003 - ART/ HISTORY- "Strange Fruit" Woolmers, Longford, Tas. for 10 Days on the Island. March 2003.

2004 - GOODWOLF, GOODWOLF AND IKIN - Handmark Gallery, Salamanca Place, Hobart, Tas.

2004 - ASPECTS OF TASMANIAN ART - "Another Short History of the World" - Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery, Launceston, Tas. 

2005 - SHADOWS IN THE WATERS - "On the State of the River" South Esk River, Launceston.

2005 - RHAPSODY 21c - Tasmanian Contemporary Art - Academy Gallery, University of Tasmania, Launceston

2007 - TASMANIE PROJECT - "No Person is an Island" suite of works and "At the Hop" -  5 short projection pieces. (with Mels Dees, Marielle van den Burgh, Katy   Woodroffe). -  Gallerie de Meerse, Hoofdorp, Netherlands.

2007 - CARBON TRADING - "Sealed System" Academy Gallery, UTAS, July 2007

2008 - STOP MOTION - a programme of short moving image pieces - with Monika Nuber and Nina Barnett. Cite Internationale des Arts Paris.

2009 -  MARCHER SUR LA PELOUSE - Exhibition from past residents of the McCulloch Studio in Paris. Curated - Leigh Hobba. Moving image projections, Plimsoll Gallery, Hobart, Tas.

2010 - CONSTRUCT - Curated Lisa Boyter. Artisan Gallery, Robigana, Tas.

2010 - JACKEYS MARSH SCULPTURE TRAIL - "Six Points of Contemplation”

2010 -  Featured artist, Colville St Gallery, Hobart

2010 - GALERIE 'T HAENTJE TE PAART with Gardie Palmer, Mels Dees. Middelburg, The Netherlands. 4th July - 29th July

2010 - pARTners -  KULTURELE EVENEMENTEN GROEPEN SCHIJNDEL, Schijndel, The Netherlands. 30th October - 11th December.

2011 - Ceramics/textiles At the Museum allen Tijden - with Gardie Palmer. The Netherlands. Jan. - March 2011

2013 - Colonial Tench to Launceston General Hopital - Sesquicentenary Exhibition. May 2013.

2015 - Ateliers Patagonia + Guests - KEG-expo,  Schindel,  The Netherlands 13th Dec 2014 to 14th Feb 2015.

2015 - Give Peace a Chance -  for International Peace Day, Aug/Sept,  Launceston General Hospital Gallery.

2016 - Animal Madness - Group Exhibition, ceramics, curated Dawn Oakford, Schoolhouse Gallery, Rosny, Tas.

2016-17 - REVIVE  sustainable art tasmania 2016, featured artist, Queen Victoria Museum and Gallery, Inveresk - Curated Ralf Haertel

SELECTED SOLO SHOWS 

1995 - "NO POETRY" - Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery, Launceston, Tas. Aug. 1995

1997 - "NO POETRY (The Final Countdown and Beyond)" - Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, Hobart Tas. Nov. 1997

2000 - "DOCUMENT" - Recent diary works and two short films. Poimena Gallery, Launceston ,Tas. July 2000

2003 - "STILL LIFE" - Recent ceramics. Nisart Gallery. Launceston. Tas.

2006 - "RHYTHM POLITIQUE" - recent moving image works and sculpture, Poimena Gallery, Button Street, Launceston. Tas.

2008 -  "LIGHT BOX" -  S.P.A.C.E. Gallery, Scotch Oakburn Gallery, Launceston, Tasmania. Sept. '08. 

2009 - "FROM HERE TO PATAGONIA - PARIS WORKS AND OTHER PIECES" -  Colville Street Gallery, Hobart. 10th July '09.

2011 - "IN THE COURT OF THE PURE LAND" - Poimena Gallery, Launceston from April 1st to April 21st.

2013 - "INTERACTIONS" - Works on paper, ceramics and video. Poimena Gallery, Launceston, March/April.

RECENT PUBLIC COMMISSIONS 

2000 - "HOPSCOTCH". Pathway for Perth Primary School. Art in Public Buildings Scheme.

2000/01 - 'MANDALA".  Courtyard works for Queechy High School, Launceston. Art for Public Buildings Scheme.

2004 - "NO POETRY (REDUX)"  new assemblages drawn from works which were part  of "No Poetry" LGH. Art for Public Buildings Scheme.

2005 - CERAMIC TILES AND FRIEZES, Tafe Launceston. Art for Public Buildings. Collaborative works with Gardenia Palmer. 

RECENT GRANTS - 2010 Arts Tas, 2007 Regional Arts Fund

RECENT RESIDENCIES

2007 - Tasmanie Project, Hoofdorp, The Netherlands, Regional Arts Fund and Tas. Regional Arts.

2008 -  McCulloch Studio, Cite Internationale des Arts, Paris.

2010 - Eindhoven Residency, The Netherlands  - assisted by Arts Tas.

2013-  Artist-in-residence, Launceston Church Grammar School, Feb - March 2013.

COLLECTIONS - Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery, Launceston, Tas., Devonport Regional Gallery. Tas.

Trust Bank Collection. University of Tas. Collection, Hobart, Tas. Gallery Z Heritage Collection, Zeehan, Tas.

Founding member together with Bea Maddock and Gardie Palmer - The Snakepit Artist Co-op in Launceston. 

Foundation member "IMAGES GROUP" Participated in the opening exhibition 1963, QVMAG Launceston.

above - Current CV - scroll