Mitchell E. Robles is highly regarded for his unique blend of abstract expressionism and contemporary Native American design. His powerfully primitive and boldly colorful images are both a revelation and a celebration of his Chumash Indian ancestry. "My paintings are my personal quest for my cultural and spiritual identity", says this 11th generation native of Santa Barbara, California. Since early childhood, his love of history and the outdoors led him to continually investigate and photograph indigenous ruins and sacred sites in California and throughout the Western United States. It was through these explorations that he developed a deep sense of connection to his own ancient lineage which is now reflected in his art.

Robles, a nationally recognized and accomplished artist, has exhibited in galleries throughout California, as well as galleries in Scottsdale, Santa Fe, and Jackson Hole. In addition, his art has been featured in Southwest Art Magazine, the Ritz-Carlton Magazine and textbook publications throughout the United States. Robles' art has also appeared in several Sundance Film Festival documentaries and in 1997 was the featured artist for the American Library's annual celebrity READ poster, A Global Newspaper Rock.

His ceremonial War Shirt series is inspired by the traditional ceremonial war shirts of the Lakota and other Plains tribes. He has created these three-dimensional images as symbols of tribal honor and power. Robles uses the rich textures of layered canvas and heavy impasto to evoke the feeling of bucksin, and decorates his shirts with the authentic ornaments that were sewn onto the original war shirts: porcupine quills, horsehair, beading and feathers. Pictographs and petroglyphs from many Native American sites throughout the southwestern United States are also embedded in the paintings as a statement of the artist's wish for unity and connectedness among all tribes.

His contemporary expressionist Longhorn Series features Southwest-style Texas longhorn cattle that confront the viewer with a profoundly masculine soulfulness. The wide range of symbols and imagery in his Rock Art Series dance with a vitality and mysticism that entice the viewer into a magical spiritual journey.