Rob Ober was a history teacher in Kent, CT, until recently, but the call to create led him into retirement to pursue a life as a full-time artist. No longer in the classroom, Ober remains focused and deeply interested in the state of the world and the lessons to be learned from its past. Painting has provided him with a powerful and uninhibited platform for expression and commentary during a time when so many people seem fine watching from the sidelines, or worse, orchestrating the repetition of dark times.

In a new series of paintings, Ober depicts stray cats, lone lions, and tigers to symbolize the complex world we live in, where everyone feels disconnected and overwhelmed yet still manages to survive. This detachment also affects countries more broadly, leaving them feeling separated and fractured, with divisive ideologies growing and leading us towards uncertain territory and a loss of togetherness.

And on the subject of wild animals, like those portrayed in the artist’s paintings, they are quickly running out of space to roam freely and exist. Their habitats are disappearing; it’s all turning plastic, and perhaps this collective recognition is numbing us. But it’s not all doom and gloom, by any means, as these fierce and independent strays seem ready to stand up and fight the good fight for truth and light.

Artistically, a recent transition to oil paint has led Ober in a more sensual direction, with painted surfaces and color palettes that feel soft, yet still punk and free-form. His gestural images of cats striking out on their own feel born of a hand and mind moving very rapidly and in deep flow. Hopeful energy and bold directness course through each work, calling to mind artists ranging from Jean Dubuffet to William Hawkins to Rose Wylie, but Ober’s distinct hand and style are all his own, and more powerful than ever.