My works are rooted in the blues, in the heavy history of the south, of its struggle with truth and longing for a home. Astrology, rootwork and alchemy play heavy roles in my practice, all resting upon the belief that devotion and embracement of such belief systems will conjure the true nature of the concepts in the works. Each piece is constructed to temporarily transfix the viewer with an intuitive recognition of presence, engaging them in a call and response between the work itself and its materials. The natural world features in these pieces as a binder to now intangible people, places and times. Soil, air, water and wax become symbols not only of the history of the locations themselves but of death's sanctification of the land, of a sacred space to return to, of those still moving and singing within us. Nothing ever goes away.
"You Can Take It With You" : The Harmonic Spheres Mixtape, a mix of songs that inspired and are included in this exhibition, is available for download in theMixtapes section.
Hoodoo Your Love
2010
dimensions variable
"Who Do You Love" 45 RPM record by Bo Diddley, beeswax, wick, jar, honey, binding spell, orris root, rose petals, coriander seed, witch grass & cumin seed.
The Endless Drop
2010
approx run time : 1 minute, loop
Blues Masters Series (Soil Crayons)
2009-2010
dimensions variable, edition of 10.
Beeswax & soil gathered from the grave sites of the following musicians ::
Willie Dixon, Burr Oak Cemetery, Alsip, IL
Son House, Mt. Hazel Cemetery, Detroit, MI
Blind Willie Johnson, Blanchette Cemetery, Beaumont, LA
Robert Johnson, Little Mt. Zion Church Cemetery, Greenwood, MS
Lead Belly, Shiloh Baptist Church Cemetery, Caddo Parish, LA
Blind Willie McTell, Jones Grove Baptist Church Cemetery, Thompson, GA
Charley Patton, New Jerusalem Church Cemetery, Holly Ridge, MS
Howlin' Wolf, Oak Ridge Cemetery, Hillside, IL
Lightnin' Strikes (S. Hopkins, M. Shelley)
2010
dimensions variable
Lightning rod, glass ball, graphite drawing on paper, frame, speaker wire, atlas mason jar and soil from Lightnin' Hopkins' grave in Forest Park Cemetery in Houston, TX.
Take Me To The Water (Black Mirror)
2009
dimensions variable
for visions, clear your mind and gaze into the bowl
Wash basin and pitcher, black candlesticks and holders, glass dish, cotton, ink, water from the Mississippi River steeped in tea bags of hyssop, senna, star anise, angelica root and wormwood, an mp3 player and speaker playing the Reverend J.M. Gates' "Baptize Me".
Love In Vain (Truth Serum No. 2)
2010
dimensions variable, edition of 4.
To be worn as perfume or cologne.
Rainwater gathered from atop Robert Johnson's grave, Little Mt. Zion Church, Greenwood, MS & perfume bottle in glass dome.
Lead Belly Communicator
2009
dimensions variable
Wooden mermet pendulum containing soil from Lead Belly's grave at the Shiloh Baptist Church Cemetery, Caddo Parrish, LA, plexiglass etched with a dowsing talking board and Lead Belly LP resting on four ball jars.
St. James Infirmary
2010
approx run time : 2 minutes, loop
in Avalon, Mississippi