About

I'm a painter of narrative portraits, juicy oysters and contemporary nudes. My narrative portraits explore unique personalities and, conceptually and emotionally, tell stories about people that interest me. I paint juicy oysters because I've loved them ever since eating them directly out of the water near the Isle of Palms in South Carolina with my father when I was a kid. And the contemporary nude paintings celebrate the unabashed power of the human body.

Emerging oil painter Nadine Robbins (American artist, 1966) fuses her formal training in graphic design and photography with her passion for oysters and portraiture, unapologetically expressing her sensual, warm, authentic, and humorous view of her subjects.  Her style is a fresh take on photorealism, trading hard, finished edges for a softer, more subjective approach.  The result?  Frank, luxurious, funny, sexy paintings suffused with joie de vivre.

Robbins’ work brings together disparate influences from her background.  She’s lived in South Carolina and southern France.  She’s been a successful graphic designer in New York City, and she studied for two years wit traditional master portrait painter Paul McCormack.  Robbins cites photographers Annie Liebovitz and Helmut Newton and painters Hans Holbein, Salvador Dalí, and Chuck Close as important influences.  Robbins’ portraits don’t typically rely on a live model, a reflection of her willingness to flout convention in pursuit of her vibrant, unique vision.  Also known for her mouthwatering paintings of oysters, Robbins is committed to oyster conservation and preservation, and she partners with several organizations to raise money for cleaning up our waterways.

Robbins work was twice accepted by London’s Royal Society of Portrait Painters’ juried exhibition.  Her work has been displayed in numerous galleries and exhibitions, including the MEAM Mod Portrait Exhibition in Barcelona in Spring 2016.  Robbins’ paintings have been published in The Huffington Post, American Art Collector, Crain’s Chicago Business, Fine Art Connoisseur, Poets and Artists and Artsy, and her witty, unconventional and nude paintings can be found in national and international collections, most notably the Howard A. & Judith Tullman Collection in Chicago.