Statement

My work combines ideas of iconography, power and cult-like behavior in America, exploring the boundaries between sacred religion and pop culture.  My recent body of work, All Hail, portrays contemporary celebrities who are glorified, yet controversial. The pieces are intended to resemble stereotypical posters that fans or groupies would hang on their bedroom walls. The drawings are photo-realistically rendered in a Christian icon style, with glowing 24 karat gold halos. They wear crowns and “bling” made of sugar detailing and extravagant rhinestones. Their clothing is constructed of carefully stained wood veneer, and their hair is made of preserved moss to resemble the kitsch of the American Chia Pet icon. My use of natural and non-archival materials is reflective of today’s Go Green trend, but it also speaks to decay and loss.

I am intrigued by the materialism of religious institutions, and how traditions of ornamentation are relevant in popular culture.  In my sculptural series titled, Green is the New Bling, I embellish appropriated consumer goods with natural ornamentation, akin to the grandeur ornamentation that churches use. Photographed in the style of catalogue items, they suggest luxury goods that Lady Gaga or Kanye West might wear to make a fashion statement. The use of sugar in my work relates to my medical condition; as a diabetic, sugar is both a life saver and a killer ⎯ reflecting today’s obsession with and comfort in overindulgence. Traditionally, this parallels the Adam and Eve story of temptation.

The All Hail series stemmed from my experience studying with a local Russian Orthodox icon painter in 2010. The series of haloed subjects began with a drawing of the worshipped 8-legged baby girl Lakshmi Tatma, born in India in 2005. The entire series consists of graphite drawings on grey paper that combine internationally recognized conjoined twins with carnivorous plants to symbolize social Darwinism as well as human fascination with physical abnormality.   In both series, I am interested in the investigation of the historical processes of canonization, and what qualifies one as a “saint,” as well as the psychological processes that measure levels of obsession and fixation. 

Education

2009 BFA in Painting, San Francisco Art Institute, CA

2008 Semester Exchange, Gerrit Rietveld Academie, Amsterdam, NL

2006 Santa Rosa Junior College, CA

2004 Early College Program, School of the Art Institute of Chicago, IL

2001 - 2005 Visual Fine Arts, ArtQuest, Santa Rosa High School, CA

Teaching 

2010 - Present Youth & Adult Ed Instructor, Root Division, San Francisco, CA

2010 - Present Artist-In-Residence, Root Division, San Francisco, CA

2010 - Present Art Teacher, Woodside International, San Francisco, CA

2010 - Present Artist-In-Residence, Leap, San Francisco, CA

2009 - Present Artist-In-Residence, SFArtsED, San Francisco, CA

2009 - Present Advanced Painting Teacher - Santa Rosa Arts Charter, CA

2009 - 2010 Art Teacher, Artworks Fine Art Studio, San Francisco, CA

2008 - Present Private Instructor, Santa Rosa, CA

2006 - 2007 Adult Workshop Teacher, S&G Studios, Rohnert Park, CA

2005 - Present Art Instructor, S&G Studios, Rohnert Park, CA

1999 - 2005 Assistant Art Instructor, S&G Studios, Rohnert Park, CA

Other professional experience

2001 - Present Commission & Murals, San Francisco Bay Area

2006 Apprenticeship, Charles Becker, Santa Rosa, CA

Selected Exhibitions

2011 Toyed With, Open Shutter Gallery, Durango, CO

Eye of the Beholder, Root Division, San Francisco, CA

The Nature of Icons, Andalu, San Francisco, CA

4th Annual Juried Plastic Camera Show, Rayko, San Francisco, CA

2010 Sideshow Happening, Root Division, San Francisco, CA

Works That Disturb the Moonlight, Alphonse Berber Gallery, Berkeley, CA

Kaleidoscope, Santa Rosa, CA

2009 Opening Show, Alphonse Berber Gallery, Berkeley, CA

For the Gold, Ever Gold Gallery, San Francisco, CA

Emerging Artists, Geras Tousignant, San Francisco, CA

Donation Show, Ever Gold Gallery, San Francisco, CA

XOXO, Space Gallery, San Francisco, CA

2008 Girlfriends Part Duh, Blank Space Gallery, Oakland, CA

2007 Suite Jesus, 111 Minna, San Francisco, CA

New Works, 1710 Coffee, Santa Rosa, CA

Photography, Anubis Warpus, San Francisco, CA

Group Show, Space Gallery, San Francisco, CA

2006 Brett-Cook Dizney Show, Headlands Center for the Arts, Sausalito, CA

2005 Students of Charles Becker, Flourish Gallery, Healdsburg, CA

Publications

2011 “There’s a Great Future in Plastics,” The Latest and Greatest, The Bold Italic

2010 “Roaming in the Gloaming,” East Bay Express, DeWitt Cheng

2009 Vans: Off the Wall: Stories of Sole from Vans Originals, DIY Artists, Abrams

2006 “Photography Spotlight: Angie Crabtree,” Expresh.com