Rob grew up in Ogden, Utah. The middle child of five siblings, he began his artistic interest at a young age with enthusiastic encouragement from his parents. As a boy he would draw endlessly, build dioramas and daydream. His high school art teachers, Steve Songer and Dick Brown, inspired him with the idea that art could be a career. He went on to study at Utah State University under the instruction of Glen Edwards. Upon graduation, he moved to Boston where he began his career, returning to Utah in 1986.
During the years since his return to Utah, Rob has enjoyed a successful career as a free lance illustrator. He created work for many clients including IBM, AT&T, Pepsi, US News and World Report, Newsweek, and Ralston Purina, winning numerous awards for his work in the process.
A few years ago, Rob decided to shift his focus toward fine art and painting the landscape he loves. He had the opportunity to study with Ralph Oberg, John Budicin, Matt Smith and Scott Christensen. He is inspired by and admires the work of the Canadian Group of Seven, Maynard Dixon, Rockwell Kent, The Toas Society Painters, Edgar Payne and N.C. Wyeth.
Rob began exhibiting his paintings in 1999. Most recently Rob received the first place purchase award at the 2003 Deseret News Landscape Competition and an award of rnerit at the Springville Museum of Art 2003 Spring Salon.
In 2002 he was invited to participate in “Rising Stars” an exhibition of Up and Coming artists in the West, at the Desert Caballeros Western Museum in Arizona. In the fall 2002 he received a Merit Award in the Deseret News Landscape Art Competition and participated in Utah Arts 2002, an exhibition of Utah artists during the 2002 Winter Olympic games.
He was awarded “Best of Show” at Maynard Dixon Country Annual 2001 and featured as “Artist Worth Watching” in the December 2002 issue of Art Talk Magazine.
Rob was featured in the November 2003 issue of Southwest Art Magazine in an article on Utah artists.
Rob works from a studio behind his home in Farmington, Utah. He has always enjoyed being self-employed and the freedom it gives him to spend time with his wife and six children.
