GentleMonster

This piece is what sparked the general theme for the entire show, and was the main display piece I used for promotional material. I’ve always had a fascination in the relationship between humans and monsters in a more personal sense, be it romantic, social, positive or negative, though I admit, I get pretty bored of the negative relationship displayed often in media. I think there’s a fascinating relationship to be explored between humans, who often consider themselves monstrous, and “monsters” who in many ways are just humans with a different exterior appearance. I think there’s a great story of self-acceptance and empathy that can be examined and found by picking that relationship apart, and this piece was just a small attempt at capturing a facet of that.

Appeal to a Common Purpose

I wasn’t really in the best headspace when I started working on the pieces for my show. In general, these pieces were all made within my last 6 months at college (the Fall and Winter of 2019) and I was struggling with depression, self worth, and really questioning my motivations for what I was contemplating doing in my future.

Spiders have always been an inspiration to me, and as an artist, the shared activity of making marks for a hope of survival resonates with me.

Spiders have also really called to me for other ways in my personal life, but the mythos and folklore surrounding spiders really aligns with me as an artist, and what I seek to do. I want to spin elaborate webs, but more often than not, a simple few marks is enough to exhaust me.

That Day with the Dragonflies

A piece that was made at the end of a dry spell over the Summer of 2019, I remember visiting a park with my parents, and they had a large boardwalk over a lake, swarming with Dragonflies. We spent a good 15 to 20 minutes there, just watching them fly across under the sun. I really liked the romance of the moment, and wished I could have spent that time with someone in a more intimate fashion, so I decided to base a piece out of it!

The forest we walked through to get there seemed so vast and deep, I wanted to inject a sense of magic beyond just the basic romantic moment, which carried into the background, but looking back, I do wonder if those details read more as non-sequiturs.

One day I hope to revisit this place, maybe I’ll find inspiration again!

Threads of Fate

I’ve always loved the mythology surrounding the Minotaur, but I’ve always seen him more as the victim, rather than the villain, in his story. I’m not sure whether I identify with him on a gay level, or perhaps I find him attractive, or perhaps it’s just because I’m a Taurus, but regardless, I’ve always found a lot of resonance with his mythology.

There’s a lot of parallels that can be drawn between being born a monster, trapped within a dark maze, only teased occasionally with freedom, and being born gay, trapped within the closet, only teased occasionally with reassurance and validation that you aren’t some sort of mistake.

Combined with the symbolism of the Red Ball of string, which plays nicely into the strings of fate, I think there’s a tragic sort of finality to a character who is more or less doomed to be a Monster…

Though, again, I made this piece when I was in a much darker headspace.

On the Breeze

Looking back, I’d more call this piece a study, over an actual finalized piece, but it was made in the run up to the show, where I was very stressed to have things to show, and was grasping at straws. I’d love to re-explore it in the future, when I have a better concept of what I was actually trying to capture.

Again, like the lake with the dragonflies, this piece is more an amalgamation of the fantasy I try to find in the nature around me, but given a more definite form.

Let Your Hair Down

Another piece that was made in the lead-up to the show, I don’t have too much to say about this piece, because admittedly I wasn’t borrowing from any sort of experience that I will ever experience, however, I think when we talk about monsters, and people, and the confluence of those two things, there’s a great potential for self love. The myth of the gorgons has some parallels with the continuous discrimination faced by those within the black community surrounding their natural hair, and while I can’t speak to those experiences, I think it’s important that we let people love themselves naturally in all forms.

The Vessel and the Soul

This piece was actually made either in early 2019, or late 2018, but it was an early attempt at a self portrait. Oftentimes I think about the distinction between the body and the individual, and how those two things don’t always overlap cleanly. I think everyone goes through this to some degree, some, like me, smaller, while others much more drastically. This was my own nod to my fantasies of being more than my own body portrays me as.

Gabriel at Ease

Another exploration of the idea of Monsters and people interacting, I’ve had a longtime fascination with angels, and their symbols. My particular point of interest is in the potential true monstrous nature of angels, which is largely overlooked in favor of the more modern, appealing and gorgeous winged human.

I wanted to appeal to both of those sensibilities, exploring Gabriel, the messenger archangel! Admittedly, this turned more into a design feature than a general composition, but I hope I treated the figure with enough respect that it has interest beyond just the monstrous fascination in the limbs and extra mouths.

Satyr Woodcut

My first Woodblock print, I wanted to reflect on one of my favorite monsters, Satyrs, and try to frame them in a modern lens. I always wonder how nature spirits frolic nowadays, in our much more polluted and deforested world. Hopefully it’s not as bleak as I’ve portrayed.

Gabriel Woodcut

Another Study of Gabriel, this time also exploring the medium of Woodcut ink prints, I recreated the image featured earlier