04/16/2026
Meet Chris « Tobar » Rodriguez — our second featured visionary artist anchoring The Neon Republic Exhibit. His universe expands the walls of this show and dares you to ride into it 🔥
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Born in Chicago. Detoured through Orlando. Grounded in Texas. Tobar creates from the in-between — between North and South, tradition and imagination, visibility and erasure. That in-between is not a gap. It’s the whole terrain.
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His universe is The Neon Rodeo: a neon-lit, mythic Western landscape where the cowboy is not a symbol of conquest, but of searching. Of endurance. Of identity under pressure. Through bold color, layered symbolism, mirrors, and projection, Tobar reframes Western iconography as a space for Black, Brown, and non-binary presence — not as outsiders, but as architects of their own myth.
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And threading it all together: K-RDEO 88.8 FM; his fictional pirate radio station, broadcasting autobiography, folklore, and cultural memory beyond the canvas and into lived experience.
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« The Neon Rodeo is not an escape. It’s a reclamation. It’s the journey of staying in the saddle long enough to discover who you really are. »
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The ride continues at The Neon Republic Exhibit 🔥
On view through April 30th–online & in-person. Come meet the artists at our April Open House on Friday, April 24th.
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Tickets 🎟️ available at the link in bio
📸 : .photo