Introduction

"The artist's job is to be a witness to his time in history."

Unlike many artists of the modern era, Robert Rauscheberg did not set out to shock the world or trick the viewer with complicated insights. He simply wanted to tell things the way they were at the time. One of his main goals was to define the line between art and life, being as they went hand in hand. Everyday objects could be displayed as art since their was little distinction between what is considered an art form. Known as a "Neo Dadaist",  Rauschenberg combined various medias to create a truly unique works of art that told a tale. His "Combines" were created by incorporating found objects with collage, painting and screen printing.  Trash found on the street would be an interesting surprise in his works, if not upon discovering, then in the process of giving it meaning through incorporation. He saw his paintings more like real life if they included real life objects. He didn't want a work of art to be something it wasn't. Uncovering his unconscious thoughts to reveal deeper meaning was not that important to Rauschenberg. In a quote, he mentions how little he thinks about the objects he uses and why he uses them. Pondering over composition would just over work the process and ruin the spontaneity. Somehow, he managed to create interesting and insightful works of art that were a direct reflection of the time and place he created them in. Painting was all about risk and discovery. Once all aspects of a process becomes overworked or realized, the risk is lost and becomes stale. Rauschenberg saw the entire world as a painting an all the inhabitants as works of art themselves. Once a viewer contemplates a painting such as the meaning, way it was created or even the size, they themselves become intertwined within the art. Trying too hard just to be different was almost the same thing as conforming in his mind.He painted for inner balance and sanity, for without it, the way of living would become a mystery.

"You can't make either life or art, you have to work in the hole in between, which is undefined. That's what makes the adventure of painting."