Bob Emser - American Sculptor
207 Campus Street, Eureka, Illinois, 61530 • 309.242.8897 • Bob@BobEmser.com
Bob Emser is an internationally recognized and lauded sculptor, with exhibits on 4 continents, 7 countries and 28 states in the U.S. His extensive body of work, dating back to 1978, can be seen in cities and municipalities, sculpture parks, museums and institutions of higher learning. During his 30+ year career he has served as a visiting artist and has taught at several universities, held a tenured professorship, and founded a not-for-profit art center that is still in existence. He has also served as the executive director of Chicago’s international sculpture exhibition, Pier Walk. As well as the founder and past president of Chicago Sculpture International, the local affiliate of International Sculpture Center, on whose Board of Directors he has served.
PUBLIC ART PROJECTS
CURRENT PROJECTS
Knoxville Kinetic Art Project, City Transit Center, Knoxville, TN
Peoria Civic Center Grand Hall Signature Sculpture, Peoria, IL
Chattanooga 5th Biennial Sculpture Exhibition, Chattanooga, TN, January 2012-May 2013
Private Commission, Highland Park, IL
Private Commission, Olympia Fields, IL
RECENT PROJECTS
515 North State Street, Chicago, IL September 1-November 30, 2011
Avenue of Sculpture, Art Chicago, 2010 & 2011
Olympia Fields, IL, Signature Piece – City Hall, 2010
Governors Island, NYC, 2010
Pinellas County Arts Council, FL, Belleair Causeway, 2010
Park Ridge, IL, Uptown Plaza, 2009
Wayne State College, Wayne, NE, 2008
City of Orland Park, IL, Marcus Theater Plaza, 2007
Dennos Museum, Northwest Michigan College, Traverse City, MI, 2007
Lake Land College, Alumni Park Plaza, Mattoon, IL, 2006
MUSEUM/PUBLIC ART COLLECTIONS
Swope Museum of Art, Terra Haute, IN
Dennos Museum, Traverse City, MI
Elmhurst Art Museum, Elmhurst, IL
Mitchell Museum, Cedarhurst Sculpture Park, Mount Vernon, IL
Freeport Art Museum, Freeport, IL
University Museum, Rio Grande, OH
Lakeview Museum, Peoria, IL
Hinkhouse Collection, Eureka College, Eureka, IL
State of Illinois Collection
City of Peoria, Riverfront Festival Park, Peoria, IL
Jørpeland, Norway, Commune Sculpture Park
AWARDS AND GRANTS
United States Artist Project Grant 2011
Pollock-Krasner Foundation Grant 2010
Artist Foundation of NY Grant 2009
United States Consulate International Grant 2009
SELECTED SOLO EXHIBITS
515 North State Street, Chicago, IL September 1-November 30, 2011
Prudential Plaza, Chicago, IL January-June, 2008
Zone Gallery, Kansas City, MO June 3 – July 7, 2006
Atrium Gallery, St. Louis, MO March 24-April 30, 2006
FLATFILEgalleries, Chicago, IL January 6- February 24, 2006
Northern Illinois University Art Museum, Shadow Drawings, August 22 - December 12, 2005
Purdue University, North Central Westville, IN November-March, 2004-2005
Krasl Art Center, St Joseph, MI July-August, 2004
Elmhurst Art Museum, Elmhurst, IL February 28-April 18, 2004
SELECTED INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITS
Sydney, Australia, Sculpture by the Sea-Bondi, 2002 & 2008 & 2009 & 2010
Perth, Australia, Sculpture by the Sea, 2010 & 2011
Stavanger, Norway, Symposia 18-8 Stainless Steel Symposium, June 2005
Cordoba, Argentina, Mask, Another Skin, November 2004
Rome, Italy, "Six Chicago Sculptors" EUR Lake, September-October 2000
Paris, France, Salon de Marly le Roi, February 1999
Friedrichshafen, West Germany, Stadt Bodensee-Museum, April-May 1985
SELECTED TWO-PERSON EXHIBITS
David Weinberg Gallery, Framework, Chicago, IL July – August 2009
Elmhurst Art Museum, Inside Out, Chakaia Booker & Bob Emser, Elmhurst IL Oct. 18, 2008-Jan. 11, 2009
TADU Contemporary, Fluid Form, Santa Fe, NM June-July 2003
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITS
Frederik Meijer Sculpture Park, ArtPrize, Grand Rapids, Mi, September 22-October 10, 2010
Governors Island Encounters, New York City, May 12-October 10
Krasl Biennial Sculpture Invitational Chicago Sculpture International September 28-October 29,2006
CSI BIENNALE 2006 Chicago Sculpture International Juried Exhibit, May 5 – June 16, 2006
9th International Shoebox Sculpture Exhibit, Univ. of Hawaii’s Art Gallery, March 5 - April 13, 2006
Chicago, IL Artist/Model-maker/Sculptor Continental Building October 2005
Greeley, Colorado 8th Annual Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit February 2005 - 2006
Somerby's Landing Sculpture 2004 / 05 Newburyport, MA
Purdue University North Central Sculpture Symposium Westville, IN Oct 2003
Convergence Outdoor Sculpture Providence, RI July 2003 - 2004
Soho20 Gallery Art in America Curated “Spring Invitational” New York, NY. March 25-April 19, 2003
Polk Museum “Third Annual Florida Outdoor Sculpture Competition” Received Best of Show. Lakeland, FL March 2003 - February 2004
Sarasota Season of Sculpture, Sarasota, FL November-May 2003
Bellevue Sculpture Exhibition 2002 Bellevue, WA June 21- October 7, 2002: Invited Artist
Chicago’s Navy Pier, Pier Walk, 1996-2001
RECENT PUBLICATIONS
BOOKS
2008 Bob Emser American Sculptor by Jeff Huebner, Foreword by Glenn Harper
2007 Kennedy Publishing Best Of America Sculpture Vol. 1
ARTICLES & REVIEWS
February 12, 2011 The Pantagraph by Dan Craft
October 3, 2010 Peoria Journal Star by Clare Howard
December 2008 The Chicago Reader by Deanna Issacs
May 2006 Art in America by Victor M. Cassidy
June 21, 2004 Artnet Prairie Smoke by Victor M. Cassidy
April 2004 Sculpture Magazine vol. 23 no. 3
CATALOGS
August 2009 Framework David Weinberg Gallery, Essay by Aaron Ott
October 2008 Inside Out Elmhurst Art Museum, Essay by D. Neil Bremer
July 2007 Sculpture Invasion Koehnline Museum of Art
EDUCATION
BRADLEY UNIVERSITY - Master of Fine Art, 1978
EUREKA COLLEGE - Bachelor of Arts - Art, 1976
WORK EXPERIENCE
FULL-TIME SCULPTOR/Lecturer
1996 – Present
NATHAN MANILOW SCUPTURE PARK, University City, IL
Member of the Board of Directors, 2005 - Present
INTERNATIONAL SCULPTURE CENTER
Member of the Board of Directors, 2005- 2008
CHICAGO SCULPTURE INTERNATIONAL
President/Co-Founder, 2004-2011
3-D CHICAGO - Chicago, IL
Executive Director, Pier Walk, 1999-2001
CONTEMPORARY ART CENTER OF PEORIA - Peoria, IL
Founder/ Executive Director, 1995-1999
EUREKA COLLEGE - Eureka, IL
Associate Professor of Art, 1989-1996
Chairperson-Fine and Performing Arts Division, 1987-1990
Assistant Professor of Art, 1983-1989
Gallery Director, 1983-1995
LAKEVIEW MUSEUM - Peoria, IL
Assistant Curator of Exhibitions, 1980-1983
PEORIA PARK DISTRICT- Peoria, IL
Landscape Designer, 1979-1980
GALLERY REPRESENTATION
Marlborough Gallery, New York, Chelsea
Atrium Gallery, St. Louis, MO
InArt Gallery, Santa Fe, NM