Life for Me, the Artwork of Robbie Best

Farmington Hills artist Robbie Best was born in Birmingham, Alabama and reared in the City of Detroit. Ms. Best works in a variety of mediums: oil and watercolor, printmaking, charcoal, mixed media and sculpture. Her subject matter is varied and reveals the breadth and range of her interests and passion. Her most consistent themes reflect her perception that Black people have been virtually rendered invisible by white society. Best has stated: “…the act of seeing is a choice …one can choose not to look at something or someone rendering them invisible.” This, she eloquently points out, “…is the essence of Ralph Ellison’s The Invisible Man.”

One of her goals as an artist is to make the previously invisible, visible. By rendering images that are primarily of African Americans, Best places at the forefront the African American image. Ms. Best’s artwork has been exhibited in New York City at the Black Fine Art Show, the Art in Abruzzo Exhibition in Galiano, Italy, and the Brandywine Gallery of Art in Philadelphia.

“Life for Me, the Artwork of Robbie Best” is presented by the Charles H. Wright Museum o f African American History (MAAH) in Detroit, MI. The exhibit runs from December 10, 2009 through April 2010. For more information on Crowning Glories and other events at the MAAH, please call (313) 494-5800 or visit MAAH’s website, www.maah-detroit.org.

Photo: Robbie Best’s multi-media work, “Life for Me.” (Eric Law), The Detroit News