Robert Longo’s Search for Truth and Meaning in a Fragmented World 

Robert Longo’s “Searchers,” on view at Thaddaeus Ropac and Pace, transforms galleries into a charged space of cinematic intensity—a place where art becomes an immersive confrontation, drawing viewers into a sensory storm of monumental scale and visceral impact. This two-part exhibition marks Longo’s return to his Combine format, a medium he explored in the 1980s to convey layered, often dissonant, images and meanings. Longo’s self-identification as a “searcher” infuses each piece, embodying his drive to confront the fragmented, image-saturated experience of contemporary life. Every work, in his words, acts as a ‘symbolic anatomy’ of the world, forming a composite body of head, chest, and gut that echoes the “endless scroll” of digital imagery. “I deliberately want these Combines to refuse to become coherent narratives”, Longo reflects. “What you see in these images is one picture, and you’re putting that together in your head.”

Longo‘s career vaulted into fame with Men in the Cities, an iconic series depicting figures in business attire caught in extreme, contorted poses—capturing moments that hover ambiguously between ecstasy and collapse. Inspired by cinematic and punk-rock influences, the works evoke both movement and tension, portraying an intense, almost theatrical embodiment of urban existentialism. These iconic works set the tone for his career-long engagement with themes of power, vulnerability, and societal tension. Informed by John Berger’s Ways of Seeing and Sergei Eisenstein’s montage theory, Searchers layers historical and cultural references with symbols of capitalism, nature, and human anguish. Works such as Untitled (Pilgrim) and Untitled (Hunter) encapsulate the “collision” of beauty and brutality, each piece echoing the swiping motion of digital interaction.

A Powerful Retrospective at Vienna’s Albertina Museum

Meanwhile, Robert Longo’s retrospective at the Albertina Museum in Vienna an immersive journey through Longo’s visual language. This exhibit offers a sweeping view of his work from 1980 to the present, underscoring what he calls “high points”—moments of personal and collective significance. Each monumental drawing, rendered with hyper-realistic detail, serves as a “report of being here and now”, as Longo explains. Reflecting on his approach, he adds, “I make these pictures because I want to see them… on a scale that takes your breath away, where you go, ‘Wow!’” The retrospective distills his vision, presenting images as monumental acts of introspection and social commentary.

In Longo’s words, he strives to “tell the truth” through these powerful visual meditations, compelling us not only to look but to truly “see”—to perceive our shared identity in a world of perpetual motion and digital echoes. Together, “Searchers” and the Albertina retrospective stand as dual expressions of his vision: one confronting the immediacy of the digital age, the other offering a timeless reflection on what it means to be both artist and human in a shifting cultural landscape. In a conversation with Whitewall that delves deeper into these themes, Robert Longo reflects on his journey, influences, and the relentless drive behind his craft.

WHITEWALL: In “Searchers,” you introduce the idea of the artist as a ‘searcher.’ Could you share how this concept originated and, in your view, how this role of ‘searching’ manifests within your artistic process?

ROBERT LONGO: Artists are searchers. We tell stories of our time with pictures. As an artist, even during our most depressing days, I have a responsibility to bear witness. I have a deep moral imperative and desire to share how I see. 

WW: With Untitled (Pilgrim) and Untitled (Hunter) in “Searchers,” you return to the Combine format from the 1980s, presenting them as ‘body parts’ like head and chest, evoking the fragmented human experience in today’s media-saturated world. How has this exploration of form evolved in Searchers, particularly with the influence of digital media on how we interpret images?

RL: I chose to use the figure as a structure or guardrails. It needed to create some rules for myself and I deliberately wanted to reject narrative. Ultimately there is discomfort in the absence of narrative. With an over-saturation of digital media surrounding us, it becomes increasingly difficult to feel grounded in reality. “Attention” is power.  I felt a need to try to move beyond the two-dimensional image. By asking the viewer to engage with different ways of seeing–via drawing, sculpture, video, painting, and photography–we return to something physical, something material and real. 

WW: In “Searchers,” each panel evokes the proportions of a smartphone screen, simulating the ‘endless scroll’ of social media. How do you see this ‘digital lens’ affecting how audiences interpret art today, and what truths might be gained or lost in our fast-paced visual culture?

RL: I memorialize images because we live in a culture of extreme impatience. I deliberately chose the frame size to mimic a smartphone, tapping into the visual literacy of our time. Alongside the Combines, I installed a film/video piece in two different scales—one on a 7-inch monitor at Thaddaeus Ropac gallery and the other on an entire wall at Pace. This piece is composed of thousands of international news images, starting from July 4 and ending the day my exhibition opened, October 9: images of the election in France, July 4 fireworks, the wars in Gaza and Ukraine, and more. I made them black and white and edited them to run at 100 frames per second. A computer program randomly pauses the rapid succession of images on a single frame for 2 seconds. A shocking amount of information is visible, regardless of speed or size. Overloading ourselves with media inevitably impacts us, even subconsciously.

Robert Longo Returns to Montage for Layers of Meaning in Charcoal

WW: In “Searchers,” you explore various mediums—charcoal, video, sculpture, photography—within each panel. How does each medium influence the meaning of an image for you, and what was your thought process in selecting these diverse forms?

RL: In the ’80s, I made a series of works I called Combines, taken from a term used by Robert Rauschenberg. With this exhibition, I returned to the idea of montage, driven by a frustration with the limitations of the two-dimensional image and a desire for my charcoal drawings to be more. Each Combine represents simultaneous realities. By colliding various mediums, I’m providing the viewer with more ways of seeing. Each medium brings its own visuality and materiality, shaping the viewer’s response. Together, the image and medium create compounding layers of meaning.

“By colliding various mediums, I’m providing the viewer with more ways of seeing,”

Robert Longo

WW: Your charcoal drawings are renowned for their detail and emotional impact. Could you guide us through the creation process of one—how much time and concentration does each piece require, and what is it about charcoal that draws you to this medium?

RL: First of all, the plan for the composition is really critical, as the composition helps the viewer read the picture. Each drawing requires a unique, nuanced approach. Some drawings require many months of applying delicate layers of charcoal. Others are first composed of aggressive mark-making, and then I carve out layers with an eraser. The final layer is a ‘black black’ charcoal. The white of the drawing is always the white of the paper. The process is the opposite of painting in that I am working from light to dark. I usually call them charcoal paintings because they exceed our expectations of drawings, not only in terms of scale but also in terms of how they function.

While I don’t have to deal with drying times, the many layers of charcoal make for an incredibly time-consuming process. The drawings can take as little as four weeks to as long as one year to make. I attempt to draw the atmosphere of the image rather than merely construct a photorealistic image. Charcoal really aids in creating that atmosphere. I consider what I am making to be hyperrealistic images. I am trying to reclaim vision back from photographs. By constructing visually powerful images out of such a fragile medium—dust and paper—I slow down the image storm.

WW: By juxtaposing art-historical images with news media and advertisements, you create a powerful commentary on modern life. Could you share how you select these images and what criteria guide their placement together?

RL: Art is history. Art history is an important way in which our lives have been chronicled, and I consider the work I make to be a continuation of that chronicle. Our images of news and advertisements, however, are fleeting. I seek to make those images accountable and create a form of atonement.

“Art history is an important way in which our lives have been chronicled, and I consider the work I make to be a continuation of that chronicle,”

—Robert Longo

WW: Your work, particularly the large-scale drawings, often captures intense societal themes, from political unrest to climate change. What do you believe is the role of art in addressing or reflecting these issues, and how do you see your work as contributing to that dialogue?

RL: The choice to make art is an inherently political one. All art is political; it’s about the freedom of expression. 

Robert Longo’s Interest in Collision and Mobilization

WW: “Searchers” references John Berger and Sergei Eisenstein. Could you elaborate on how their theories on montage and interpretation influence your current approach and what new interpretations you’re exploring?

RL: Berger’s seminal text Ways of Seeing (1972) has been important to me since my time as part of the Pictures Generation. He challenged our expectations of image consumption and how the surroundings of an image can signify intent. This all relates to Eisenstein’s montage and how seemingly disparate images can create new meaning. It’s akin to living in the world—something is always next to something else. I’m not interested in pastiche or collage; I’m interested in collision.

WW: Your works often reflect on power, loss, and collective identity. How personal is this process for you, and what do you hope viewers take away from experiencing your art, especially in a setting like Searchers?

RL: Making art is highly personal. Because I came of age during the Civil Rights Movement in America, my work has often been about war, the American dream, power, and protest. My hope is that I can motivate people to keep engaging, keep mobilizing during a time of crushing uncertainty. 

“Because I came of age during the Civil Rights Movement in America, my work has often been about war, the American dream, power, and protest,”

Robert Longo

WW: Searchers and much of your work seem to engage deeply with themes of existence and morality. How do you perceive the role of art in probing or conveying these profound truths, and in what ways has this dimension of your practice transformed over the years?

RL: So much of the work I’m making now is made out of anger. It’s hard not to feel completely hopeless in today’s challenging times, but art can provide a light, a path via which to navigate our dark days together. Making art is my act of resistance.