Andrew Wroble
Andrew J Wroble
- Home: Harpers Ferry, Iowa
- Born : 1952, Casper , Wyoming
Drawing
- The ink I use is a transparent mixture of finely ground matter suspended in water. Value, tint, shade, and tone get manipulated by varying particle density in liquid. Commercial mixtures, called “India Ink”, are available with ready to use concentrations in both black and colored variants.
- I start drawing by brushing or streaming washes of ink on paper. Most of this activity drifts toward unknowns. Liquids find a level as they are directed around and over embedded fibers that influence flow on the surface. Some of the ink dries and bonds in place while the rest of the drawing remains wet. With the right timing understood I then flood clean water over the entire piece to remove any of the pigments that have not adhered. This additional transformation reveals the final marks, line, and context forming a completed work.
Perspective
- Andrew Wroble was born in 1952 in Casper, Wyoming and lived his early years in the central part of that state. His father worked in oil distribution which took the family through moves between Wyoming, Nebraska, Illinois, and finally Iowa. After graduating high school and drafted in to the United States Army, an opportunity arose to paint murals while he was stationed in Europe. Never having studied art Andrew looked for guidance from an exhibition featuring Rembrandt brushed ink drawings. The immediacy of Rembrandt’s technique and simplicity in communication fascinated him. On discharge from active service Wroble took advantage of the GI Bill and his new found intrigue with ink to study at The University of Iowa. There he was exposed to drawing as a modern medium.
- In following years Mr. Wroble formed an ‘experimental’ street theatre troupe in Minneapolis, Minnesota (Pesky Thoughts Theatre), designed architectural glass work in Singapore, modified a Montana ranch’s calving season as ‘performance art’, was a shop assistant in a porcelain ceramic studio, and hosted annual ‘Art Car’ rallies in North East Iowa (Drive on the Edge). Staying active, he presents his work at art festivals, sells in gallery collections, and readily accepts invitations to demonstrate for organizations and schools.
- Andrew’s life is rooted in rural America. A current theme in work deals with trees and the air surrounding them. For him trees chart stories running parallel with human experience.
- Andrew and his wife live in Northeast Iowa on a certified American Tree Farm that overlooks The Upper Mississippi River Valley. There they’ve built and operate Point of View Bed and Breakfast and include Andrew’s studio on the farm.
