Jackson, Irvin, Shewmaker

February 17 - March 30th

THOM JACKSON| DIFFERENT DRUMER

My project titled Different Drummer stems from my own personal character trait of being a non- conformist. I try to step outside the box with my personal work. My advertising and commercial work usually involves a large crew of people, sometimes as many as 30-40. While I enjoy that collaboration, I wanted this shoot to be more personal and intimate in order to get across this idea of a free spirit on his own in the middle of nowhere. "Different Drummer" evolved through the efforts of just three people. This freedom to create on our own brought a more personal slant on one person’s moment in time celebrating his uniqueness and individuality. The three of us had an amazing time. A favorite moment, one of many, occurred on a never ending road without another human being in site with only the sound of an accordion playing. This inclusive sharing of time and space made it possible for me to capture the private moments of a nonconformist who exemplifies a Different Drummer.

KELSEY IRVIN | PAIRINGS

Pairings celebrates the welding of both likely and unlikely candidates. This body of work continues to explore the merging of unconventional materials, and goes beyond so by also exploring other marriages in art. Opportunities for pleasant pairings can emerge within subject matter, materials, concepts, and by pairing the paintings themselves. The exhibition explores partners compositionally and beyond. Some of the work is intentionally paired, presented side by side, in such a way that could potentially be interchanged.

Driven to bring new life to objects that might otherwise be lost or deteriorated in time, I collect traces of lives lived – memories misplaced in need of recognition – and use them in my work collaboratively with the paint itself. Most often I work with a wide range of vintage ephemera, found object, oil, acrylic, fabric, leather and graphite. My work reaches for a balance between the past and the present, while acknowledging what might trigger sentimentality in the future. The vintage ephemera is meant to ignite a treasure hunt of sorts. I aim to acknowledge and pay reverence to the history of those materials. Each object used tells a story, and each piece itself holds a deeper meaning as the sum of its parts.

REBECCA SHEWMAKER | BIG BEND

I have visited Big Bend National Park several times in the last 25 years. As a native Texan, I am fascinated by the sky island of Chisos Mountains and the surrounding Chihuahuan Desert.  Containing over 800,000 acres and located 200 miles from a major airport, Big Bend is vast and remote. It is a place of artistic pilgrimage where I discover beauty manifested in colorful rocks, thorny plants, and the ever-changing sky.

This series is based on my latest trip to Big Bend in January 2023.  After hiking in the park for three weeks, I returned to my studio and worked for 9 months making these thread paintings. Using both a sewing machine and hand embroidery, my creative process gives me a sense of calm similar to the peace I experience while walking within these places.