Robert Xavier Burden

Robert Xavier Burden
Burden in 2023
Born (1982-07-08) July 8, 1982 (age 44)
Hamilton, Ontario
CitizenshipCanadian
Known forPainting
MovementPop Surrealism, Contemporary Icon painting
Websitewww.robertxburden.com

Robert Xavier Burden is a Canadian artist currently based in California. He is best known for his large-scale decorative oil paintings depicting his childhood action figures, set against wallpaper and fabric patterns from his childhood home.

Early life and education

Burden was born in 1982 in Hamilton, Ontario. He drew at a very early age, and started painting seriously at the age of 16.

As a youth, Burden played competitive ice hockey. He was a minor hockey league teammate of future NHL players Brad Boyes and Steve Ott. Burden was twice awarded the MVP of his high school varsity hockey team.

In 2005, he completed his BFA in Art and Art History at Queen's University.

In 2007, he received his MFA from the San Francisco Art Institute in California.

Career

While at the Art Institute, Burden was awarded the Irène Pijoan Memorial Painting Award. He was also the recipient of the Murphy and Cadogan Fellowship. Burden briefly held part-time faculty positions at City College of San Francisco and Pixar Animation Studios in Emeryville, California. He received a large amount of attention for his 15 foot by 8 foot oil painting The 20th Century Space Opera, which depicts over 150 different vintage Star Wars action figures. The painting received mixed reviews, and was featured on ABC News, StarWars.com, and The Chicago Tribune. Wired Magazine wrote a news article about the painting under the headline The $200k Star Wars Painting That No One Will Ever Buy.

Exhibitions

Burden's work has been exhibited at galleries and museums throughout North America, including The Carnegie Arts Center, The MOAH, The Lesher Center For The Arts, The Huntsville Museum of Art, The California Center For The Arts, Escondido, La Luz De Jesus Gallery, Roq La Rue Gallery, Gregorio Escalante Gallery, and Oceanside Museum of Art.

Personal life

After meeting as art students at Queen's University, Burden was in a long-term relationship with curator Aimee Ng. He currently resides in Southern California.

Public collections

References

  1. 1 2 "San Francisco Art Institute Public Education Faculty | Robert Xavier Burden". SFAI.
  2. ↑ "Robert Xavier Burden | Artist Overview | MutualArt". www.mutualart.com. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  3. ↑ "Heron Arts goes BIG. The detailed, larger-than-life paintings of Robert Burden". Broke-Ass Stuart's Website. Retrieved 2022-12-22.
  4. 1 2 Sansweet, Stephen J. "World's Largest Star Wars Painting to Premiere at Celebration Anaheim". StarWars.com. Retrieved 2022-12-22.
  5. ↑ "Robert Xavier Burden". highlike. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  6. 1 2 "The Batman of the Art World: Sacred Plastic Toys and the voyage back to innocence". Sleeve Studios. Retrieved 2026-01-18.
  7. ↑ "Robert Burden (BFA '05) | Fine Art (Visual Art) Program". www.queensu.ca. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  8. ↑ Creative Brick Road Podcast E:36 - Robert Xavier Burden, retrieved 2022-12-21
  9. ↑ "Shooting Gallery Presents: Toy Box by Robert Xavier Burden". Art Week. 2013-04-21. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  10. ↑ "Daniel Martin Diaz, Robert Xavier Burden". La Luz de Jesus Gallery. 2011-12-02. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  11. ↑ "Juxtapoz Magazine - Robert Xavier Burden: His Wild Blue Yonder". www.juxtapoz.com. Retrieved 2022-12-22.
  12. ↑ "15 coolest items from the world's largest Star Wars collection". Guinness World Records. 2022-05-04. Retrieved 2022-12-22.
  13. 1 2 Dambrot, Shana Nys. "Robert Xavier Burden: Original Myth Gregorio Escalante Gallery, Los Angeles". Whitehot Magazine of Contemporary Art. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  14. ↑ Stapleton, Cullen (2015-07-25). "Interview with Artist/Painter Robert Xavier Burden – San Diego Comic Con 2015". WORST. COMIC. PODCAST. EVER!. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  15. ↑ "Bay Area artist pays homage to 'Star Wars' through paintings that pop". ABC7 San Francisco. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  16. ↑ Nathoo, Zulekha. "Canadian artist pays homage to Star Wars nostalgia". CBC Canada.
  17. ↑ "This amazing mural is the perfect ode to 'Star Wars' fandom". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  18. ↑ Brown, Molly (2015-03-11). "Epic 'Star Wars' painting on sale for $200K". GeekWire. Retrieved 2022-12-22.
  19. ↑ "The $200K Star Wars Painting No One Will Ever Buy". Wired. ISSN 1059-1028. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  20. ↑ "Artist Robert Xavier Burden's $200,000 'Star Wars' Painting Is Worth The Money". UPROXX. 2015-03-24. Retrieved 2022-12-22.
  21. ↑ "Carnegie exhibit spotlights superhero influence". Merced County Times. 2019-09-05. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  22. ↑ "Bedford Gallery 2016-2020 | Linda Vallejo". Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  23. ↑ "6. Robert Xavier Burden | Center for the Arts, Escondido". California Center for the Arts, Escondido. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  24. ↑ "Robert Xavier Burden – Study of a King Kong". La Luz de Jesus Gallery. 2014-07-28. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  25. ↑ Zjawinski, Sonia. "Artist Pays Tribute to His Action-Figure Collection". Wired. ISSN 1059-1028. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  26. ↑ "Robert Xavier Burden: Original Myth". Hijinx Artist Management & PR. Retrieved 2022-12-22.
  27. ↑ "Art Auction 2022 Preview Exhibition". Oceanside Museum of Art | OMA. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  28. ↑ Kragen, Pam (2023-04-09). "North Park painter likes playing the long game with intricately detailed 'Relics'". San Diego Union-Tribune. Archived from the original on 2025-02-11. Retrieved 2026-04-06.
  29. ↑ Collins, Leah. "These giant paintings of toys will make you feel like a kid again". CBC Canada.