Robert Pruitt: Infinite

(L to R):  Be of our spaceworld, 2009. Conté, charcoal on kraft paper. 48″ x 34″. Overseas Building Operations, Art in Embassies, Arlington, VA; Superbad Garveyite, 2009. Conté, charcoal, pastel, tea. 50″ x 38″. Collection of Dr. Greg Shannon, Houston, TX. Add to calendar Google Calendar iCalendar Outlook 365 Outlook Live About Robert Pruitt: Infinite is the first survey exhibition to closely examine the artist’s practice across twenty-five years, bringing together the influences, research, and ideas that shape his vision of contemporary culture. The exhibition marks Pruitt’s return to Houston and offers an expansive view of a practice rooted in portraiture, storytelling, and imagination.Pruitt is known for his large-scale figurative portraits, which he imbues with a dynamic constellation of symbols and material references that evoke a diverse and radical Black past, present, and future. Working across drawing, sculpture, and mixed media, Pruitt renders figures drawn from the community around him-individuals who inhabit both his physical environment and his expansive imagination. Through this process, the works evolve into fictional yet inspirational profiles grounded in ethnography and portraiture.Drawing from a lineage that includes artists such as Charles White and John Biggers, Pruitt bridges a wide range of cultural references, including science and science fiction, rap music, comic books, Black political movements, and African traditional cultures. These layered visual languages transform his figures into complex archetypes that elevate and universalize identities often pushed to the margins.Robert Pruitt: Infinite features more than 120 works, including drawings, sculptures, mixed-media pieces, works on paper, and personal ephemera. Together, they offer an immersive exploration of Pruitt’s creative universe and his ongoing effort to imagine new narratives of Black life and possibility. Organizers Robert Pruitt: Infinite is organized by Contemporary Arts Museum Houston and curated by Ryan N. Dennis, Co-Director and Chief Curator. Support Support for Robert Pruitt: Infinite is provided by Terri + Troy Hamm and The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts. Contemporary Arts Museum Houston exhibitions are made possible by the patrons, benefactors, and donors to CAMH’s Major Exhibition Fund, July 1, 2024-June 30, 2025: Anonymous, Chinhui Juhn and Eddie Allen, Louise Jamail, Sissy and Denny Kempner, and Beverly and Howard Robinson. Contemporary Arts Museum Houston is funded in part by the City of Houston through the Houston Arts Alliance and the Texas Commission on the Arts. About the Artist Robert Pruitt was born in 1975 in Houston, Texas. He received his BA from Texas Southern University (2000) and an MFA from the University of Texas at Austin (2003). Pruitt works in a variety of materials, with the focus of his practice centered on rendering large scale figurative portraits. He projects onto his images a juxtaposing series of expe...