Whether conjuring memories of childhood or encouraging thought-provoking discourse, the exhibit symbolizes Blackstone’s intent to create art as a means of bringing people together. His extensive installation began in 1990 on his grandmother’s dining room table with just a few pieces.
“‘Crystal City’ is transfixing,” said Peter Benkendorf, founder of The Collaboratory. “You cannot take your eyes off it. And every time you sit with it you see something more, something different. ‘Crystal City’ matters because it tells the story of complex man, over 35 years, from starting on his grandmother’s dining room table until his untimely death two years ago. It is both grand in scale and yet approachable, built of seemingly ordinary objects. But there is nothing ordinary about it.”
Inside ‘Crystal City’
The artwork contains many found and cast-off objects, including toys, miniature cars, yellow police tape, various lights, a boxing glove, a road sign, a license plate, a world globe, musical instruments, masks, historical artifacts, memorabilia and much else.
The expansive work is partly a eulogy to the matriarch who raised Blackstone, says an article in the summer 2019 edition of the UrbanGlass Art Quarterly.
“Like the actual Dayton, Blackstone’s sculptural city is constantly in flux, building and rebuilding in an unrealized fantasy of renewed relevance and commercial sustainability,” the article states. “Crystal City” is “dense with piled and purposefully positioned content, to expose inequity from its rotting source.”
Robert Blackstone discusses his “Crystal City’' exhibit with the Dayton Daily News in 2018
Credit: DaytonDailyNews
Before it was housed in the Leigh Building in 2018, “Crystal City” resided in a space formerly occupied by an Elder-Beerman department store just off Courthouse Square. The space was secured with the help of the The Collaboratory, an organization committed to community innovation and action, and Eva Buttacovoli, executive director of The Contemporary Dayton (formerly Dayton Visual Arts Center).
‘He made magic from scraps’
The self-taught Blackstone was a perfect fit for The Collaboratory, who embraced his outsider spirit and passion for the unique.
Benkendorf said Blackstone devoted 30 hours per week to his constantly evolving installation, which spoke volumes about his dedication to his craft and the people he loved, including his family.
“Robert Blackstone was a thinker,” Benkendorf said. “He thought about everything. Sometimes he was profound. Other times it was like he was searching for a childlike innocence in the world. Robert’s genius was his ability to translate those thoughts about himself, his family, Dayton and the world into a living (yes, there were plants and fish as well as light and sound), layered visual and auditory expression of who he was and how he felt about what was going on around him.”
The Dayton native, born Sept. 19, 1971, died Aug. 1, 2023 in downtown Dayton from a gunshot wound in the chest. He was 51.
“He had a big heart and was always there to lend a hand to someone in need, as he was a jack of many trades,” his obituary stated. “As many would say, Robert was a selfless, humble man who impacted many people here. He would convey, ‘It’s God’s Work.’ Nevertheless was a man who brought his imagination to reality, inspiring others.”
He is survived by his children Robert Brookshire-Blackstone, Quincy Brookshire-Blackstone, Robin Blackstone and Shataria Blackstone.
“He didn’t have formal training but he had vision,” Robin said. “And more than that he had purpose. He created something out of nothing. He made magic from scraps. He gave everything he had to his children, to his community and to this work. ‘Crystal City’ was his life’s work but also his message that healing, imagination and purpose can be built piece by piece, even in the hardest places.”
Expanding horizons
In Nov. 2024, upon invitation from Benkendorf, Byrnes and others concerned about the future of “Crystal City,” Laura Bickford and Jonas Sebura of the Kohler Arts Center visited Dayton to tour the exhibit. They were immediately impressed by the work and knew it fit the center’s mission of artist-built environments.
“An artist-built environment (involves) an artist (working) on a sort of monolithic, often monumental project, usually for decades, that is typically not meant to be divided but (viewed as) a total work of art,” said Bickford, curator of the Kohler Arts Center. “Usually the project deals with large scale social issues — philosophical, religious, spiritual — beyond aesthetic. Showing ‘Crystal City’ at the Art Center will really add and expand on our viewers understanding of what an artist-built environment is. When I saw ‘Crystal City’ I instantly felt I was in the presence of Bobby whom I’ve never known but all the things I felt from it have been affirmed by talking to people who knew him and his embrace of life and exploration and his aesthetic sensibilities and the deeper things he was thinking about and wrestling with through ‘Crystal City.’”
Credit: Russell Florence
Credit: Russell Florence
The disassembling of “Crystal City” will begin this fall but a specialized 3D scanning process to ensure every single element is properly identified has already begun through assistance from the University of Dayton.
“I was totally blown away by the scale of the piece,” said Sebura, director of exhibitions and collections management for the Kohler Arts Center. “I was overwhelmed in a good way and in an emotional way. It’s such a powerful object. Our main priority will be to honor the vision of the artist.”
In addition, Cincinnati-based independent artist/radio producer Susan Byrnes is creating a documentary titled “Moving Crystal City” that will chronicle the process from Dayton to Wisconsin.
“The John Michael Kohler Arts Center is a museum for visionary artists and artists environments and I immediately thought Robert’s work needs to go there,” said Byrnes, who interviewed Blackstone in April 2023 for WYSO’s “Studio Visits.” “The film will show the very complex process of how ‘Crystal City’ is dismantled, moved and put back together. If you’ve ever seen ‘Crystal City’ you might think this is a daunting feat and what’s why we’re making a movie about it because it is.”
Credit: Russell Florence
Credit: Russell Florence
“Crystal City” is scheduled to open at the Kohler Arts Center in October 2026. The long-term goal is to structure and elevate the work as a traveling exhibition.
“A big goal for the exhibition is a proof of concept,” Bickford said. “Once we have the scans and make a system for disassembling it, packing it and reassembling it, (the hope) is that it can be reconstituted in other institutions, hopefully somewhere in Ohio. We not only want to show Bobby’s work and introduce him to a broader audience but also set up ‘Crystal City’ for a future beyond the building downtown.”
Blackstone’s family is grateful for this moment and the interest in preserving his legacy beyond Dayton.
“Two years after his passing, his ‘City’ still stands,” Robin said. “And I believe that’s what he would’ve wanted — not just for people to look at it but to feel it. To understand that this world he built wasn’t just about art. It was about hope. He created something that matters."
HOW TO GO
What: Art Talks regarding Robert Blackstone’s “Crystal City”
Where: Leigh Building, 1OO W. Second St., Dayton
When: 1:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. Saturday
FYI: This event will feature reflections from Peter Benkendorf, Laura Bickford, Susan Byrnes and Dayton native and Brooklyn-based artist/writer John Drury.
Cornelius Frolik contributed to this report.
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