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Our April 8 artist of the day is Bay Area painter Robert Bowen. We took this opportunity to ask him a few questions about how his work, what's new, and how he's coping with the current situation.
KL: How are handling the stay at home order?
RB: Not much has changed for me personally, but its nice to have my wife working at home and not to have to worry about her commuting daily. I try to stay busy, try. It gets hard some days to be creative, but if I push myself over that first hurdle and just pick up a brush, it gets easier.
KL: Any silver lining to the extra time at home?
RB: My dog is super happy to have us both home all day.
KL: What are you currently working on in the studio?
RB:Well, I just finished Lo & Behold for your Artist of the Day project, thanks for including me, now I'm just priming and sanding a 40 x 40 in. panel to keep myself busy. I'll figure out whats going on that in the next day or so.
KL: Do you use reference photos or does most of your artwork come from your imagination?
RB: Absolutely reference photos, Especially for the engines and machine parts, I can't make that stuff up. I edit, change, and add my own touches of course. In the end its its like a visual Mad Lib from my mind.
KL: Who are your biggest influences?
RB: The surrealist art movement in general, but the emotional content of Francis Bacon and in-your-face recognizable styles like Haring, Warhol, and Frank Frazzeta have always made me want to be able to stand out in a crowd. That's really hard for me to say, I'm all over the place with influences. I still have a love for my graffiti roots, so bright colors are always on my mind, even if the subject matter is a bit dark.
(Photo by Michael Cuffe)
KL: Do you have any advice for upcoming/new artists?
RB: Just try to stay busy creatively. It's easy to fall in a slump and get down on yourself, especially in a moment of downtime. Keep pushing and learning, it's a never ending education, as long as you keep pushing, you'll keep growing. I promise.
KL: What do you have planned for the future?
RB: Shit, if there is one, I'm looking forward to releasing my first art toy this fall, and looking to get a book out after that.
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In this interview, Alexandra Manukyan reflects on the dualities that define her practice: the weight of human grief carried through the female body, the interplay between concealment and truth, and the evolving tension between timeless tradition and our rapidly shifting digital age. What emerges is a portrait of an artist who paints not just figures, but the human condition itself—layered, vulnerable, and endlessly resilient.
