Sometimes It Takes a lot
felt, hot glue
approx. 24”x36”
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This felt storyboard gives my take on a story of an alcoholic friend of mine who ended up drunkenly crashing his car into a church. In his drunken daze, he looked up to see the cross and felt that God had given him another chance. He has been sober since the incident.
The Day the Boat Flipped Over
felt, hot glue
approx. 24”x36”
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When I was in my early teens, my dad, brother and I went fishing in our aluminum boat. After getting a line stuck in the tree overhead, one of us stood up to untangle and ended up flipping over the boat. While we were only in about four feet of water, it felt like an emergency. We all swam safely to shore, but ended up losing an antique rod and reel owned by my great-grandfather that day.
Filet-O-Fish
felt, hot glue
approx. 11”x27”
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I started fileting fish in my early teens. It was a unique experience and my first venture into some kind of subsistence activity that took life and in turn provided nourishment for my own body.
i don’t know when but a day’s gonna come
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i don’t know when but a day’s gonna come
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God Speaks from the Television
felt, hot glue
approx. 24”x 36”
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I have been creating a series of felt storyboards like the ones I grew up with in Sunday school except these narratives tell incredible contemporary stories of faith. In this one, an opiate addict turns on his TV at 3am to find showing. He sees it as a communication from God and kneels to pray. He has been sober since the incident.
Great-Grandfather’s Bobber
photograph
dimensions: varied
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In May of 2016 I reacquainted myself with a fishing bobber my great-grandfather made in the early to mid-20th century. My photograph is a simple documentation of the family heirloom, but also an acknowledgement the handicraft holds its own power without anything being altered or added.
Fishing Bobbers
(various assortments)
wood, metal, shellac
dimensions: varied
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I created several dozen fishing bobbers in various sizes and shapes from a repurposed broom stick.This exploration offered me a way to reflect on my great-grandfather’s activity of making hand-crafted fishing bobbers.
The Thin Places
video (trt 00:01:45)
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This video activated the fishing bobbers I made.Watching the video parallels the act of fishing with its palpable notions of potential hope and patient waiting.The term “thin places” comes from theologian Marcus Borg which refers to those situations where we find ourselves closer to some spiritual realm.
The Thin Places (Detail)
Doth a Fountain
felt, string, hot glue
approx. 12”x9”
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Doth a Fountain is a felt banner that uses my great-grandfather’s handwriting to write out a Bible verse. The Bible verse holds dichotomous language which asks for purity within oneself instead of a more realistic amalgamation.
you feel that way real strong
(third banner from installation you feel that way real strong)
laser cut felt, hot glue, wood
approx. 40”x 28”
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For the set of banners in my installation I photographed the three sides of my great-grandfather’s fishing bobber. I lifted the text and laser cut the words into the felt banners. I then projected both still and moving imagery through the banners.
you feel that way real strong
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you feel that way real strong
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you feel that way real strong
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you feel that way real strong
felt banners, string, video projectors,
video (trt 00:06:15)
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To experiment with a more immersive approach to installation work, I created three felt banners with Bible verses cut out of them which were used as screens to both block and permit video clips which were accompanied by audio clips that were both found and made.
you feel that way real strong
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you feel that way real strong
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i don’t know when but a day’s gonna come
paint, rocks, found wood, pottery wheel, light, extension cord, dimmer switch
dimensions – varied
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For this installation, I wanted an apocalyptic sense of the space. The rocks were scrawled with Bible verses from Revelations about the second coming of Jesus. The light, moving on its own, gave an eerie sense of life to the performing objects.
MARGARINE GALLERY
