BEASTS 2019-2025

One morning, a raccoon wandered up to my car while I was waiting at a stop sign. She wanted a conversation. I wanted a conversation. She reached for me with her little raccoon hands. She inspired this series of paintings on paper.

The beast is as feral as the untamed nature of the planet itself. The intention of the scale of this work is to elevate the beast as equal if not larger than the human. People collect animals. We collect them in zoos, in our homes, in our stories, in our popular culture. We transform them into digestible versions of what they truly are. We try to humanize them, observe them, enslave them to perform for us and to work for us. They feed us. We infuse them with human traits through our movies, animations and literature, pretending they can possess language skills. We put clothing on them, infuse them with symbols possessing mystical powers and associate them with religious piety. They become participants in our myths and fairy tales and we make toys in their likeness all in an attempt to domesticate them. We mindlessly and greedily eradicate their native environments in service of our own. These paintings are meant to give these very familiar animals a confrontational presence to remind the viewer of their huge relevance in our lives.

The Beasts are Acrylic on Paper • stitched all around the border • grommeted in the upper corners.

contact val@civilianart.com for info and availability