"Retrospective of Fred Tieken" Celebration of his life & work

Royse Contemporary is honored to present the "Retrospective of Fred Tieken", highlighting his extraordinary work and life. This exhibition will feature a broad selection of his work throughout his artistic career, concluding with his final works never before exhibited. Royse has chosen an iconic assortment of his mixed media and digital works that showcase his expressionistic and painterly style that he brilliantly blended with his poignant commentary and humor.

As Fred would say, "Painting is like baring my soul to the world." His level of emotional commitment is beautifully and vividly demonstrated in his work. “Illuminating his love of color and line and his diverse subject matter, Tieken emphasizes personal subjects and shares experiences with his viewers. His artwork offers wry social observations and smart symbolism, as well as a brief glimpse into his fascinating world, fueled by his passion for life, art, and music.

During his career he worked between his two beautiful studios in Paradise Valley, Arizona and Venice Beach, California. Tieken's work was featured in more than 60 juried exhibitions and one-person shows from coast-to-coast. He also exhibited in several major art fairs including Aqua Art Miami, XContemporary, Spectrum Miami, LA Art Show and Palm Springs Fine Art Fair. He produced his final body of work featuring two digital art series: "ER” and "Brainstorm” in 2018, which we were honored to showcase and host in Tieken’s final exhibition "Art, Music, Life, Repeat" in October 2019 at Royse Contemporary.

After several daunting years filled with medical battles, Fred Tieken passed away on April 18, 2022 and his beloved wife and partner Gail Tieken passed away on May 29, 2022. The Tieken’s were incredible people and so important to the art community here in Arizona and California, both through his artwork and their philanthropy. Royse Contemporary built a long-term personal and professional relationship with the Tieken’s, sharing “they were an incredible couple whose commitment to the arts and building a stronger art community here in Arizona was very important to them, and it has been an honor to work with them on numerous projects over these last 12 years,” states Royse.

The “Retrospective of Fred Tieken” will open to the public Thursday, February 2, 2023 from 6:00pm to 9:00pm. We will host a reception celebrating the life and art of Fred Tieken. This special exhibition will be on display at Royse Contemporary through February 27, 2023.