Rodney Alan Greenblat

Rodney Alan Greenblat
Born	(1960-08-23) August 23, 1960 (age 64) Daly City, California
Education	Corcoran School of Art (1978) School of Visual Arts (1978–1982) [1]
Known for	Illustration fine art
Notable work	Art and character design for the PaRappa the Rapper franchise
Movement	Neo-Surrealist
Website	whimsyload.com

Rodney Alan Greenblat is an American artist, graphic designer and children's book author. He was previously director of the Center for Advanced Whimsy, ^[2] is responsible for the character design of several video games, including the PaRappa the Rapper series, ^[3] and was an active figure in the East Village art scene of the 1980s. ^[4]

Work

Greenblat's work was shown in East Village museums in the 1980s, ^[5] including the Gracie Mansion Gallery, ^{[6] [7]} and was at the time considered part of a neo-surrealist movement. ^[8] Within the same decade, he did the artwork for New York-based alternative rock band They Might be Giants' first album. ^{[9] [10]}

In the 2010s, he has been recognized for his work on Parappa the Rapper and Um Jammer Lammy , as well as the Thunder Bunny series of books. ^[11]

In 2017, he opened The Rodney Shop, a retail outlet and gallery in Catskill, New York. ^[12] The location closed in 2020. ^[13]

Computer and video games

• Rodney's Funscreen (Published by Activision, 1992, PC/Mac)
• Rodney's Wonder Window (Published by Voyager, 1992, PC/Mac)
• Dazzleoids (Published by Voyager, 1994, PC/Mac)
• PaRappa the Rapper (Published by Sony, 1996, PS1)
• Rodney's Funscreen 2 extreme (Published by Interlink, 1997, PC/Mac)
• Rodney's Artbrain (Published by Interlink, 1997, PC/Mac)
• Um Jammer Lammy (Published by Sony, 1999, PS1)
• PaRappa the Rapper 2 (Published by Sony, 2001, PS2)
• Major Minor's Majestic March (Published by Majesco Entertainment, 2009, Wii)

Solo exhibition history

1982

• The Threshold, Rodney Alan Greenblat. Museum of Art, Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, Rhode Island ^[1]

1983

• Gracie Mansion Gallery, New York, New York ^[1]

1984

• Time of Love. Galerie Anna Friebe, Cologne, Germany ^[1]

1985

• The New World. Gracie Mansion Gallery, New York, New York ^[1]
• Suburban Utopias/Familiar Frontiers. Australian Centre for Contemporary Art, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia ^[1]

1986

• House of Progress. Gracie Mansion Gallery, New York, New York
• The Tricentennial Room. Karl Bornstein Gallery, Los Angeles, California

1987

• Reality and Imagination; Two Taste Treats in One! Institute of Contemporary Art, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
• Reality and Imagination; Two Taste Treats in One! Contemporary Arts Museum, Houston, Texas
• The Scenic Route. Gracie Mansion Gallery, New York, New York

1988

• Design Your Own Future. Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota

1989

• John Berggruen Gallery, San Francisco, California

1990

• Cosmic Adhesive. Gracie Mansion Gallery, New York, New York

1991

• The Center for Advanced Whimsy. Carpenter Arts Center, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts

1992

• Land Ho! The Mythic World of Rodney A. Greenblat. Museum of Art, Roanoke, Virginia
• Land Ho! The Mythic World of Rodney A. Greenblat. Chrysler Museum, Norfolk, Virginia

1993

• Technoweenie. PPOW, New York, New York
• Land Ho! The Mythic World of Rodney A. Greenblat. World Financial Center, New York, New York

1995

• Rodney Time. Creation Gallery G8, Ginza, Tokyo, Japan

1996

• Rodney's Late Breakfast at Milk. Milk, Ebisu, Tokyo, Japan

1997

• Rodney Adventure. Discovery Museum, Bridgeport, Connecticut

1998

• New Studio Rodney. Parco Department Store, Japan ^[14]

1999

• Rodney’s Art in a Box. Sony Plaza, Tokyo and Osaka, Japan ^[14]

2000

• Rodney’s Character Club and Post Office Parco Department Store, Tokyo and Osaka, Japan ^[14]
• Cafe Rodney. Tokyo, Japan ^[14]

2001

• Canworld Expo. Takashimaya Department Store, Osaka, Japan ^[14]

2005

• Modern Day. BCB Gallery, Hudson, New York ^[14]

2006

• Downtown – The New York Art Scene 1974-1984. Grey Art Gallery NYU, New York, New York
• Universe. Centella Gallery, Tucson, Arizona

2007

• Elemental. Art Print Japan Galleries, Tokyo, Japan

2008

• Free Wheel. BCB Gallery, Hudson, New York

2010

• Thunder Bunny Buddha Shrine. BCB Gallery, Hudson, New York ^[15]

2012

• Karma-con. The Rubin Museum, New York, New York

2013

• Gala Veinte!. Hudson Opera House, Hudson, New York ^[16]
• The Wonder Verified and Fulfilled. BCB Gallery, Hudson NY

2015

• Vibrant Space. BCB Gallery, Hudson, New York

References

1. Buckley, John (1985). "Rodney Alan Greenblat" (PDF). Australian Centre for Contemporary Art . Retrieved June 27, 2024.
2. "50 for the future". Newsweek . Vol. 125, no. 9. February 27, 1995. p. 42.
3. Zimmerman, Eric (June 1999). "Lamb rock: interview with Rodney A. Greenblat". The International Design Magazine. Vol. 46, no. 4. p. 98. ProQuest   214757949 – via ProQuest.
4. "Rodney Alan Greenblat". Artnet . Retrieved March 8, 2024.
5. "Gracie Mansion". People. Vol. 24, no. 26. 1985. p. 112.
6. "Multiples & Objects & Books". The Print Collector's Newsletter. 17 (2): 62. 1986. ISSN   0032-8537. JSTOR   24552971.
7. Kirwin, Liza; Brown, Robert F.; Pacini, Marina; Karlstrom, Paul J.; Gustafson, Judith A. (1991). "Regional Reports" . Archives of American Art Journal. 31 (3): 34–41. doi:10.1086/aaa.31.2.1557718. ISSN   0003-9853. JSTOR   1557611.
8. Westfall, Stephen (1985). "Surrealist Modes among Contemporary New York Painters" . Art Journal. 45 (4): 315–318. doi:10.2307/776805. JSTOR   776805.
9. They Might Be Giants (Album notes). They Might Be Giants. Bar/None Records. 1986.
10. Flansburgh, John (May 3, 2012). "John Flansburgh: Observer Media" (Interview). Interviewed by Debbie Millman. Design Matters. Archived from the original on July 12, 2012. Retrieved September 2, 2013.
11. Beg, Tom (February 6, 2012). "The Supplement: Rodney Alan Greenblat". University for the Creative Arts .
12. Waldron, Diana (August 22, 2018). "The Rodney Shop". Visit Vortex. High Falls, New York.
13. "The Rodney Shop" . Retrieved June 27, 2024.
14. "Greenblat, Rodney Alan". Wave-I. Seoul, Republic of Korea. Retrieved June 27, 2024.
15. "Galleries & museums". Chronogram. Kingston, New York: Jason Stern. September 2013. p. 69.
16. "Museums & galleries". Chronogram. Kingston, New York: Jason Stern. December 2010. p. 38.

External links

• Rodney Alan Greenblat's official site
• Rodney's official Japanese-language site