ROBYN WARD: WALKING IN THE DARK
Robyn Ward: Walking in the Dark Installation View
Irish artist Robyn Ward debuts his first solo exhibition in the United States this month with Walking in the Dark, opening at 82 Gansevoort Street in New York.
Curated by Shai Baitel, artistic director of MAM Shanghai, the exhibition presents an immersive installation featuring twenty-two large-scale paintings and six freestanding sculptures. The works explore themes of migration and trauma - both personal and collective.
Although Ward is widely recognised for figurative painting, here he shifts toward abstraction and mixed media, reflecting a nomadic lifestyle shaped by both escapism and avoidance.
Born in Dublin and raised in Belfast during the final years of the Troubles, Ward began painting at a young age. His early creative impulses led to his expulsion from school after he painted graffiti on the roof. Since then, he has remained dedicated to his practice, living and working between New York, Los Angeles, and Mexico City.
Ward’s work poses questions such as: why do people roam, and what are the consequences of constant movement?
A sense of restlessness runs throughout the exhibition, with layers of psychological, political, and emotional meaning embedded in both the artworks and the exhibition design. The space itself is labyrinthine and dimly lit, reinforcing the show’s central metaphor-like walking in the dark, the viewer must adjust their perception to uncover what is not immediately visible.
Using loose, fluid brushstrokes and distinctive markings across oversized canvases, Ward constructs a visual language that feels both nostalgic and fragmented. Moments from his past appear and disappear, partially revealed or obscured, as each layer captures fleeting impressions of time and memory.
Walking in the Dark tells a story that is both urgent and reflective. Drawing from personal experiences of instability, governance, and violence, Ward’s work also gestures toward broader societal fractures and ongoing global conflicts. At its core, the exhibition reflects a life defined by movement, uncertainty, and a persistent search for grounding.