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Robin Sperling (b. London 1963)
Robin Sperling is a British artist and photographer. He studied at Fettes College, a private school in Edinburgh, and later earned a bachelor’s degree with first-class honors from Central Saint Martins College. After completing his education, Robin lived and worked in London and Berlin. In 2000, he relocated to the Puszta in southeastern Hungary, where he has lived ever since.
In his creative practice, Robin Sperling combines abstract and conceptual art. A purist in spirit, he explores concepts of space, emptiness, and plane, using line as a tool. Unlike his conceptualist predecessors—such as Robert Smithson, Richard Long, and Andy Goldsworthy—who often dissolved their works into the landscape, Robin finds enjoyment in the original, raw materials that engage in a constant dialogue with living matter. Similar to Richard Long's works, his pieces balance natural design with human-created systems.
Robin Sperling works in several mediums, including painting, graphics, readymade art, silk-screen printing and encaustic (intaglioed wax). Including most recently, intrinsically designed “non-functional” printed circuit boards (PCBs).
He prefers to work with natural materials, over the past 25 years Robin has actively incorporated clay, wax, and crude oil into his creative practice. Clay, in particular, is associated with the parched soil of the Pannonian plain, where he works. He artificially simulates fault lines and allows the materials to change organically—many fissures appear according to the material's dictates, while the artist guides and supports the natural patterns. In the case of oilblots, “fossilized sunlight”, Sperling addresses the corpuscular nature of blotting through the use of graph paper, creating a scientific framework reminiscent of Ernst Logar’s crude oil artworks.
Robin has a deep-rooted passion for utilizing found objects and artifacts in his art. His pieces also incorporate sprouted wild tobacco seeds and their ethereal floating fluff, along with volcanic ash. Additionally, he is fascinated by industrial waste as a source of inspiration; the discarded items left to deteriorate acquire a distinct character and vitality. This aligns with Mark Dion’s art practice, which similarly engages with the concept of found materials. Dion often explores themes of nature and culture, using objects from the environment and urban landscapes to provoke dialogue about ecology and human impact. Together, their works reflect a commitment to reimagining the discarded and overlooked; transforming them into compelling narratives.These materials straddle the worlds of human-made objects and nature (Physis), embodying a dichotomy of harmony and conflict. Through these processes, a new critical attitude towards technology is articulated, focusing on the ethical aspects of art's role in society, as represented in his latest work, Gestell.
Robin Sperling's works are part of numerous public and private collections.
Robin Sperling
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The Exhibition Artificial Art was partly inspired by iHuman documentary, animation credits by:
find us at Booth G505 Art9
© 2025 by Vito Vojnits P.
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