Best known for his photorealistic drawings, Longo explores imagery within a complex social and cultural forces. Robert Longo was born in 1953, in Brooklyn, New York, and has had a childhood fascination with mass media: movies, television, magazines, and comic books, which continue to deeply influence his art. One of the quintessential artists of the 1980s, Longo is perhaps best known for the writhing, dancing figures in his iconic Men in the Cities series.

The American artist´s drawings are, perhaps, his most iconic. They are as much about the content they depict as they are about the artist´s intense devotion to the practice of drawing. His amazingly deep, anthracite charcoal drawings show emotional motives. Perhaps the best known photorealist series of Robert Longo´s is Men in the Cities, depicting contorted, life-size human figures in an urban setting. Robert Longo´s art focuses on his never-ending investigation of the themes of power and authority, which also permeate his series of blackened American flags (Black Flags, 1989–91), and oversized handguns (Bodyhammers, 1993–95). Longo´s series, Monsters, which depict massive breaking waves, and The Sickness of Reason, featuring atomic bomb blasts, followed in 2002 and 2004. It was during the 1980s that Robert Longo started to produce editions, mainly lithographs. He then gradually developed a high-end print technique, Pigment Print, which allows him to reproduce his drawings perfectly. Robert Longo´s prints capture the same level of detail and emotional impact of the original drawings.

Robert Longo

Robert Longo is known for large-scale, hyperrealistic charcoal portraits that consider power, authority, and social unrest.

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Robert Longo's "Rumi" is a large-scale charcoal drawing depicting a massive jellyfish, showcasing his signature photorealistic style. The artwork captures the ethereal beauty and serene presence of the jellyfish, while also alluding to its potential for causing harm, reflecting the duality of nature's creations. The title "Rumi" may reference the 13th-century Persian poet known for exploring themes of beauty and the sublime, suggesting a deeper contemplation of the natural world's elegance and peril.&nbsp;In a review of Longo's exhibition "A History of the Present," the piece "Rumi" is described as "beautiful and serene, but these creatures can cause great pain and damage if they sting in the right place." This observation highlights the juxtaposition present in the artwork, emphasising the coexistence of beauty and danger in nature.&nbsp;Longo's meticulous rendering of the jellyfish invites viewers to reflect on the complexities of natural forms, encouraging a deeper appreciation for the delicate balance inherent in the natural world.

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“ Art is an attempt to try and understand our own contemporary situation through making images that are completely personal, while also addressing our social context „

—Robert Longo