Photograph by Kerry Davis

Robert Tomlinson has been the executive director and curator for four art non- profit organizations: the San Jose Institute of Contemporary Art, Gallery One Visual Arts Center, Jupiter Arts Center and the Oregon Arts Alliance. In addition, Tomlinson had his own contemporary art gallery in New Mexico for 4 years. He was also the director and organizer for the first two annual citywide exhibitions for the city of Emeryville, selecting and installing works by 120 artists each year. Collectively, he has curated and installed over 100 exhibitions.

Robert is also a professional artist, working in two different mediums; silver gelatin based photographs and mixed media drawings. He has had 14 solo shows and his work has been selected for over 50 group exhibitions. He is the recipient of a Pollock/ Krasner Grant, and has been an artist-in-residence at the Ragdale Foundation, the Kala Institute and the Montana Artists Rufuge.

He has also been an active teacher – designing and implementing an art & architecture curriculum for the first through sixth grades in San Francisco public schools, beginning drawing classes for high school aged students and a middle school art curriculum for the Thorp Unified School District. He also set-up programs for people with developmental disabilities. As executive director for the Oregon Arts Alliance he developed and taught a series of workshops based on best business practices for artists called, “The Art Of Doing Business”.