Robert Nava

Three Four Three Four is pleased to present I'm Rubber, You're Glue, a solo show by Robert Nava.

"Usually, in mythology, the hero wins his battle against the monster. But there are other hero myths in which the hero gives in to the monster. A familiar type is that of Jonah and the whale, in which the hero is swallowed by a sea monster that carries him on a night sea journey from west to east, thus symbolizing the supposed transit of the sun from sunset to dawn. The hero goes into darkness, which represents a kind of death. I have encountered this theme in dreams presented in my own clinical experience.

The battle between the hero and the dragon is the more active form of this myth, and it shows more clearly the archetypal theme of the ego's triumph over regressive trends. For most people the dark or negative side of the personality remains unconscious. The hero, on the contrary, must realize that the shadow exists and that he can draw strength from it. He must come to terms with its destructive powers if he is to become sufficiently terrible to overcome the dragon. I.e. before the ego can triumph it must master and assimilate the shadow."

Carl Jung Man and His Symbols, 1964, p.111-112

Robert Nava (b. 1985) was born in East Chicago, IN and currently lives and works in Brooklyn, NY. Nava received an M.F.A in Painting from Yale University in 2011 and a B.A. in Fine Art from Indiana University Northwest in 2008. Recent exhibitions include "Instant Vacation" at Trestle Projects, Brooklyn, NY, "Art Shop 2" at 99 Cent Plus, Brooklyn, NY, "Broke Baroque" at Sanctuary Project, Pittsburgh, PA, and "Pushing Painting Paradigms" at Mason Gross Galleries, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ.