Member’s Spotlight Exhibitions

The Member’s Spotlight Exhibitions at The Contemporary Dayton celebrate the vibrant creativity of our local and regional artist community. Open to all current artist members, this ongoing series offers participants the unique opportunity to present a focused body of work in a solo exhibition curated by Heather Jones, Curator and Director of Programs and Engagement.

Each exhibition is installed in The T. Chase Hale & Jonathan A. Hale Gallery and remains on view for one month, opening with a public reception on the first Wednesday and continuing through the last Saturday of the month. These exhibitions not only highlight the diverse practices and perspectives of our members but also provide a professional platform for artists to gain visibility and engage directly with audiences.

Most artworks are available for purchase, with proceeds supporting both the artist and The Contemporary Dayton’s mission to advance equity, diversity, and access through contemporary art. Participation in the Member Spotlight series is one of the many valuable benefits of being an artist member of The Contemporary Dayton.

On View

Simon Robins, Lost Wallet, 2026, oil and acrylic on canvas, 20 x 20 inches, $3,000. Courtesy of the artist.

Simon Robins: Sociable

June 5 – 27, 2026

Opening Reception: June 5, 6 – 8 pm
Closing Reception: June 27, 4-6 pm

The paintings in Simon Robins: Sociable, contain imagery sourced from public domain and found photographs discovered through extensive research by the artist  in digital archives. Cropping, recoloring, and recontextualizing these images, Robins transforms fragments of anonymous histories into works that feel at once familiar and elusive.

Robins’ practice is deeply informed by his work as a collections librarian and faculty member at University of Dayton, where he regularly navigates institutional archives and historical image collections. By removing photographs from their original context, his paintings invite viewers to reconsider how images shape collective memory and how archives reflect systems of power, inclusion, and omission.

In these works, Robins explores themes of social alienation, belonging, and the quiet tensions embedded within everyday interactions. His paintings evoke the visual language of post-war photography and design while raising timely questions about authorship, historical bias, and the lingering influence of institutional narratives. Through carefully composed and psychologically charged imagery, Robins creates space for reflection on the ways people connect, observe, and exist within larger social structures.

About the Artist

Originally from Portland, Oregon and now based in Dayton, Simon Robins has exhibited his work at the Dayton Society of Artists, Rosewood Arts Center, and The Contemporary Dayton. In 2025, he received First Place in the Dayton Society of Artists Annual Members’ Exhibition and Second Place in The Contemporary Dayton’s Juried Members’ Exhibition. Robins earned a BA in History and Art History from Portland State University and a Master of Library and Information Studies from University of British Columbia. He currently works as a collections librarian and faculty member at the University of Dayton, where his engagement with digital archives directly informs his artistic practice.