Robert Yoder: Sluice Gate

Robert Yoder is best known for turning often-overlooked everyday objects into intricate assemblages. In addition to his signature cut wood road-sign constructions, he also creates sculptures from photograph fragments and LEGOS – sleek, uniform modules that allow the addition of depth and color to the artist's constructions. His recent collages rework discarded luxury shopping bags into landscapes, their creases and folds of heavy paper approximating valleys and canyons.

Yoder's compositions hint at aerial views of utopian landscapes without specificity of location. In 2005, the artist began working with a local carpet company to produce artworks in hand-tufted wool. The Frye is pleased to present Sluice Gate (2005), the result of this collaboration. This exploded seascape, with its unexpected palette and rich dimensionality, continues Yoder's compositional investigation into new materials.

Born in Virginia, Yoder currently lives and works in Seattle, where he is represented by Howard House. His work is included in distinguished public collections, including the Seattle Art Museum and the Museum of Fine Arts Houston. Yoder's artwork is currently featured in the nationally traveling exhibition Lewis and Clark Territory: Contemporary Artists Revisit Place, Race, and Memory, organized by the Tacoma Art Museum.