Pinecone, 2024. Graphite on paper, 12 x 16 inches.
Green Pepper, 2024. Graphite on paper, 12 x 16 inches.
Chambers, 2023-2024. Graphite on paper, 12 x 16 inches.
Untitled (#48), 2022-2023. Graphite on handmade paper, 18 x 24 inches.
The Fool, 2023. Graphite and found text on handmade paper, 18 x 24 inches. Found and collaged text reads: After Laz’s cigarette was lit / We evolved to seek. We are / Mother Nature / Sometimes you need more / PROOF / sometimes you need less. / Mix It Up Every Now and Then / it does not require / a step-by-step sequence of events / tailored to your specification / This race covers the entire / Pain Cave / So why do we do it / It’s / really foolish. I’m gonna go / TRY IT ALL / for the / EXPERIENCE / In the dark ages, / we would / always have a full belly. What gets us into the weird / Second Draft / What inspired you to begin / Sometimes I look in the mirror, and I’m / A KIND OF DEJA VU / I dug very deep inside myself. / I slapped my face / Ha ha. It’s a / PATTERN / WELCOME TO EARTH / The first mile you think you can’t go on, you’re / familiar with the “pain cave.” / “But it’s kind of fun, you know; you might find your connection / You prepare to go on forever. / At one point in my travels, / UFOs usually show up. / “Accept the day as it comes.” / experience it exactly as it is, / when the plan falls apart. / You will learn how to live
Untitled (Unified Theory), 2023. Graphite on paper, 12 x 16 inches. Private collection, Taylor, TX.
How Many Ways Are There to Live?, 2023. Oil paint, charcoal, papier mache, and found text on wood, 16 x 20 inches. Found and collaged text reads: Let's explore the / brain and nervous system and how they / come up with a definition of their own main characters / They can be totally fictional / Fights for dominance 'On one side / I AM A PEACOCK, A SWIRLING MASS / my bills paid / the other end of the spectrum / a hermit. / resounding nothing, / I feel like I don't behave / in "correct" ways. / There is no time to dwell on the known and potential risks and benefits / The most up-to-date information on a billion people in the world / I was tired of being afraid. So I'd decided It's not that you need to have all things people are talking about / There is a lot of information I've had to struggle not to absorb those / moods, moments, and movements But a glitch in my brain / didn't know if my work would / SUCCEED! What if we acknowledged those fears, / As if it were a normal thing for what it means to be human. / No artificial light. / "The Light Comes from Within" any idealist who will fight / Sometimes you don't need / the how / for whatever comes next." I'm still learning how / I know what I'm made of."
A Home to Meet Our Needs, 2021. Graphite on acrylic ground on wood, 38 x 38 inches. Photograph by Bradford Raines.
Second Nature, 2023. Oil paint, damar varnish, and found text on wood panel, 16 x 20 inches. Found and collaged text reads: The Sun The Sun / The light! The stillness! / and because our sun is a nuclear furnace / bigness, vastness, power beyond / we stood in a long line to share / the right light. / Many people experience nature as divine. / I was in my garden, / that mix of humanity and divinity / trying to answer. / I became open to listening to / gut feelings that arise / What did you come up with? What / do you mean? / that passions guide reasoning. / The people who looked at the tree emerged with / shared understandings, of a vast mystery. / It gets in your head! / And in some places the unspoken part gets / to the masses. / You know which way to go? / it’s difficult to define / “Everything we normally do was / from / many times before. There is no stronger home / because they cry at the same movies I do. / MADE IN USA MADE IN USA / That means not worrying / To me, the “right thing” meant / a lot of time designing experiments / still puzzling over things / “being amazed at things outside yourself.” / People often ask me if I like my work. / Indicate the approximate value of your / action / If you / Do it / “It belongs there,” / And / I’m still willin’
Welcome to Earth, 2023. Oil paint, charcoal, graphite, and found text on wood panel, 16 x 20. Found and collaged perimeter text reads: One of the magicians I've been researching says / art can be anything, / 'IF WE LOSE THE LAND, / What forces can sanctify an object, / style gets one only so far. / Who do you make your art for? / Wow! That's a big question! / I love to believe that I actually don't know [laughs], / all I'm trying to do is paint the shit out of it... / What I connect to most is the way / They thought I didn't speak / It's impossible to know / what might be happening in the world / in the unfolding present moment, / My friend in undergrad said, "Yo, you / try to control or understand it, you'll miss / the truth / what separates you from / WHAT OUR EYES SEE. / WELCOME TO EARTH / has become more urgent / 'I HAD NO IDEA THERE WERE SO MANY, / Like many people my age / I originally thought I was going to / Get the truth today- / but everyone has it now, / it's not enough for you to / Tell my about the symbolism / I'm part of where everything comes from / the voices and the experiences and the insights / This is what we should hope for,
Chit-chat #2, 2022. Oil on wood, 16 x 20 inches. Photograph by Bradford Raines.
Chit-chat #1, 2022. Oil on wood, 16 x 20 inches. Photograph by Bradford Raines.
Chit-chat #3, 2022. Oil on wood 16 x 20 inches.
Too, 2023. Oil on wood, 16 x 20 inches.
Exit Interview, 2023. Oil paint, charcoal, pastel, and found text on wood panel, 16 x 20 inches. Found and collaged text reads: What do we know about / the incredible hybrid, / The universe is mostly empty. / Yet, / We meant every note. / I didn’t have to look to know / “And what brought you here?” / When our turn came, we all / Stay in the network. / “To remediate the soil,” / a little bit of something for everyone / I know. Including me! / What time period are you talking about? / “I don’t know,” / For a long time there was this / impossible dream of / The Sun / “We got lost and ended up in the / artwork for which we don’t have a category. / reflecting the light of the universe. / the real, real deal. / On the other side of the / tactile, musical, and physical- / me mumbling, and then / shouting, / Get it, y’all, GET IT!
Reunion, 2022. Oil on wood, 16 x 20 inches.
Gratitude, 2022. Oil on wood, 16 x 20 inches. Photograph by Bradford Raines.
Okra Fingers, 2022. Oil on wood, 16 x 20 inches. Private collection, Seymour, TN.
The Wood, 2022. Oil on wood in oak artist’s frame, 16 x 20 inches. Private collection, Knoxville, TN.
Bloodlines, 2022. Oil on wood, 16 x 20 inches.
Lake Anna, 2022. Oil on wood, 16 x 20 inches. Photograph by Bradford Raines.
Guts (gumdrop), 2022. Oil on wood, 16 x 20 inches.
Under the Mountain, 2023. Oil paint and papier mache on wood panel, 16 x 20 inches.
Solid Succulent Joy (lemonhead), 2022. Oil on wood, 16 x 20 inches.
Carbon Cycle, 2022. Oil on wood, 16 x 20 inches.
Tide Pool, 2021. Graphite on acrylic ground on wood, in oak artist’s frame, 16 7/8 x 20 7/8 inches overall.
Space 1.8, 2021-2022. Graphite and acrylic on paper mounted to wood, 16 x 20 inches.
High Desert, 2021. Graphite on acrylic ground on wood in oak artist’s frame, 17 1/4 x 22 3/4 inches overall.
Silver Spring, 2020. Graphite on acrylic ground on paper, 12 3/16 x 16 3/16 inches. Private collection, Knoxville, TN.
After Hours, 2020. Graphite on acrylic ground on paper mounted to wood, 12 3/16 x 16 3/16 inches. Collection of the Artist.
Open Water, 2021. Graphite on acrylic ground on wood, 22 1/4 x 52 1/2 inches overall. Photograph by Bradford Raines.
Migration, 2021. Graphite on paper, in four parts, 16 3/16 x 48 3/4 inches. Photograph by Bradford Raines.
Big Breath, 2020. Graphite on acrylic ground on wood, 30 x 30 inches. Photograph by Bradford Raines.