Toby Rosenbloom
Please note, this text, this review is kind of like my diary notes on an artist to myself and they change over time. When I talk about artists in these pages, I don’t mind not holding back punches. That is part of the game.
I realize that Rosenbloom is a yet untapped talent with great potential. She is a grown woman, but deserves a little nurturing TLC. I love the following painting and am taking the time to think about Rosenbloom as an artist, where she is now, and give my personal take on why I think this one painting at a level just beyond her other work. I don’t mean any disrespect by that. I wouldn’t take the time here if I didn’t fully admire Rosenbloom as an artist.
Drive-By, Dream Center LA - 2026?
I love this painting. I have no idea what Rosenbloom intended, when I look at it, I have thoughts about it from a few different perspectives.
Color: The color hits you over the head. When you look at Rosenblooms work, this is her super power. I’d love to see this in person some day.
Rosenbloom is creating an atmosphere where it feels like we are approaching an early hour on the clock with the dark blues and greens that are obscuring most of the landscape. This is really sophisticated work.
I like how the the headlights of the car are barely illuminating just a sliver of the tree on the left. Very cinematic.
And least we forget, at the same time, those buildings are just booming in your face.
Composition: I’m not sure about the composition. By this I mean where things are on the canvas. I love the elements of this piece. What bothers me is what I perceive to be a lack of refinement. All of her pictures feel like the compositional decisions were made through a camera lens.
note: That is my opinion, Rosenbloom could be going for an ‘outsider-artist’ style. If you look at some of the work by Horace Pippen, you can see how an outsider/folk artist approaches a composition often straight on without making adjustments as they work. Rosenbloom kind of feels like this to me).
Concept: This is where I personally really start to appreciate this work. It’s also what I think separates it from her other pieces.
Compare in your mind ‘Drive By Dream Center’ with ‘Blue Construction Fence’ below. The only separator between the two works in my opinion is one of them lets you tell a story in your minds eye and the other is just a pretty mysterious picture. I can’t create a narrative about Blue Construction fence so I am not investing my curiosity…
Blue Construction Fence
I’m reading in a lot of deep psychological exploration. When you start to look at a work of art, unconciously you start at a point and then your eye will wander around while your brain makes order of what you are seeing. After multiple repeated viewings, I think anyones eye will enter the picture through the big old Dream Center sign. I started to realize after repeated viewings that I was starting new internal narratives each time I saw that sign. The internal narratives informed how i viewed the rest of the picture. Over time the different narratives I told myself built up so that on my 10th view I was remembering earlier thoughts and creating new ones. (I need to write this better).
Current Take on Rosenbloom:
I’m trying to get more details on Rosenbloom. Currently I really like her color pallet, her mark making, her sensibility.
I’m not sure if I fully am getting into her subject matter yet. Other than the Dream Factory, I’m not taking that next step with her as an artist. Its hard to tell her timeline how she is developing.
I feel her work is dripping with potential, but I’m having a hard time fully buying in. I normally wouldn’t review an artist that I had so much ambivalence about (I don’t know what to think), but she did create a mind blowingly great work.
There is enough there for me to look forward to seeing how she matures as an artist in the future. The last work I can find from her is my favorite. So that is a great trajectory.