Robert Gelinas has been a painter/professor/lecturer with the University of South Florida since 1963 when the University was barely three years old. Previously, he was well known as a painter throughout the Mid-south area where he taught at Memphis State University for five years. His BFA and MFA degrees were earned at the University of Alabama. He has been invited as guest artist-in-residence at Yaddo Colony in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. and Maitland Research Center in Maitland, Florida and Visiting Artist at Allison’s Wells Art Colony Workshops and the Mississippi Art Colony for several visits and the Lochaven Art Center and Upham Studio in Florida. He has taught the New York Campus for USF twice and lectured on his work and given critiques at University of Alabama, University of Tennessee, Skidmore College and Pratt Institute in New York. He has exhibited his work widely in one-person and group exhibitions in the United States and abroad and has received numerous awards for his work. Principal exhibitions have included two Corcoran Biennials, Washington D.C.; Painting of the Year Annuals in Atlanta, Georgia; Bon Marche’ National Gallery Invitational, Seattle, Washington; Butler Institute of American Art, Youngstown, Ohio; Society of the Four Arts, West Palm Beach, Florida and Piedmont Painting Exhibition, Mint Museum, Charlotte, North Carolina.

Among his many awards have been the “painting of the Year” Award, Atlanta, Georgia, 1961; Mid South Purchase Award, also in 1961; Faculty Research and Development Grants from the University of South Florida, and the Fine Arts Council of Florida Individual Artist’s Fellowship. His most recent awards were Merit Awards for the “Mayshow” Lakeland Center for Creative Arts, Lakeland, Sarasota Art Association, Sarasota, FL, ’94 & 2004; a First & Second Prize at Longboat Art Association Invitational “Turnabout” Show of Judges, April, 2002. (Judged by Assoc. members); and Best of Show, ART ENCOUNTER 2007, an all Florida juried Exhibition at Von Liebig Art Center, Naples, Fl. May, June, 2007.

Recent shows Include “Modern Art In Florida 1948-70,” Tampa Museum of Art, May, 2003; “Exeunt Omnes Show and Celebration of Eight Retiring artists,” University of South Florida Contemporary Museum of Art, May-July, 2003; and Multiple Visions IV”- The History of Art Making in Sarasota, Selby Gallery, Ringling School of Art & Design, June, July, 2003; Sarasota Art Association, Sarasota, Fl. 2004.

Gelinas’ work is included in numerous collections both private and public. He has been represented by Galleries in New York, (Madison Gallery, 1961,62, Hansen Gallery, 1977, Madison 90 Gallery, 1980-86); Washington D.C., Chicago, Cleveland, Seattle, Dallas, Memphis, Atlanta, as well as Tampa, Miami, (Virginia Miller Galleries) Naples, Lakeland, Winter Park, Sarasota (Foster Harmon Galleries, 1981-93) and Jacksonville FL.; most notably the High Museum, Atlanta, Georgia; Brooks Memorial Gallery, Memphis, Tennessee; Carol Reese Museum, Johnson City, Tenn.: Pan Am Collection, NY, NY; Florida House of Representatives, Tallahassee; GTE Florida, Inc., the Tampa Museum of Art and the Polk Museum in Lakeland, FL.; recent acquisition for Van Wezel Hall, Sarasota, FL.

Gelinas has had environmental exhibitions and collaborative “art performances” which were performed before live audiences, notably a Performance Piece “Nightspace” performed in Tampa and New York City, 1979 and 1980.. His most recent activities, in addition to painting, involve generating special performance art pieces for video and computer, some of which have been shown on Cable TV and a book, Notes On Painting from the Right Brain with a computer disk AmigaVision application published in Tampa ‘91, ‘92 and revised in ’93 & 2004 in Sarasota.