— About
Meet the Artist
Robert Scholten is a multidisciplinary artist whose work bridges the worlds of painting, street art, and contemporary illustration. Inspired by the Old Masters like Turner and Monet, as well as modern visionaries such Basquiat, Robert’s art fuses meticulous craftsmanship with raw energy.
His work spans pop surrealism, impressionism, and expressive ink drawings, often featuring intricate layers, bold compositions, and a narrative depth that invites interpretation. Whether working with traditional media or digital tools, Robert explores the tension between chaos and control, abstraction and form.
Based in Melbourne, Australia, Robert is not only an artist but also an educator, sharing his passion for visual storytelling with the next generation. His art has been featured in exhibitions, galleries, and online platforms, inspiring audiences with its unique blend of historical influence and modern street culture.
— About the Art
Artist Statement
Born and raised in Melbourne, I grew up in the artistic hub of St Kilda in the 80s and 90s, surrounded by a raw creative energy that shaped my love for art. My work is deeply influenced by the cities I have lived in—Melbourne, Osaka, Chiang Mai—each leaving its own imprint on my practice. In Osaka, I designed theatre sets and painted my first murals, exploring how art interacts with space. In Chiang Mai, I absorbed the textures and layered histories of a city caught between tradition and reinvention. Yet, I have always lived between cultures—Filipino and Dutch—never fully belonging to one or the other. Rejection from art schools early on only fueled my drive to carve out my own artistic path. That tension, of being both an insider and an outsider, runs through my work.
My practice is a conversation between different mediums and styles, mirroring the way cities are constantly shifting. I use expressionist ink drawings to capture fleeting urban moments, naive raw symbol art to express the raw energy of street life, and watercolour / acrylic oil impressionism to explore the mood and atmosphere of these spaces. My black-and-white works embrace punk DIY aesthetics, photocopy textures, and layered erasures—pulling from zine culture and the underground art movements that shaped my formative years.
The city is a palimpsest, built from layers of history, memory, and migration. I translate this into my process—scraping away paint, burying words beneath surfaces, revealing fragments of images and text. Some marks remain, others are obscured, echoing how personal and collective histories are rewritten over time. My art is not just about documenting cities, but about navigating identity—about finding home in the layers.
C.V.
Selected Exhibitions
2023 Kingston Layers / G3 Art Space
2022 Melbourne Scenes / The Ritz-Carlton
2021 Rick Amor Drawing Prize / McCleland Gallery
2019 Fertile Ground / Kingston Arts
2019 Imagine Nation / G3 Arts Space
2018 A Connection of Stories / Birmingham PS and Creative Victoria
2018 St Kilda Festival / City of Port Phillip
2017 The River of Voices / Warranwood PS and Creative Victoria
2016 Swinburne University
2015 Ock Pop Tok Learning Centre / Laos
2014 Process / Kingston Arts
2012 Art Jam / BFC Square Manila
2011 Collective Momentum / 106 Gallery
2011 Community Spirit / Toyota Emerging Artists
2010 Drawn / Brunswick Street Gallery
2007 KPMG Global Conference / Ho Chi Minh
2009 RMIT Masters / Guildford Lane Gallery
2008 Traces of Being / RMIT Project Space
2009 Animal Tales / 106 Gallery
2008 National Maritime Art Prize / Maritime Museum
Education
2009 Masters of Fine Art (Painting) / RMIT University
2006 Bachelor of Communication Design / Swinburne University
Awards
2021 Rick Amor Drawing Prize (shortlisted)
2018 St Kilda Festival (winner)
2008 Maritime Art Awards (shortlisted)
Publications and Artist Talks
2022Twenty Artists / City of Port Phillip
2021Sometimes / City of Melbourne
2018St Kilda News
2017Drawn from Life / Hardie Grant
2015Creativity in the Everyday / Phnom Penh University
2015Zupi Magazine #46 / São Paulo
2014Unleashed Wakeboard Magazine
2014The Art of Urban Sketching / Shenyang
2012Sketches and Doodles / b*creative Mag #9
2009Jikininki / RMSED Magazine