VIRTUAL SENIOR SHOW: Cyrus Howard
Artist’s Statement
My relationship to art has recently changed drastically as my experiences with disability impact the way I can create. My recent pieces are about depicting unimaginable creatures and how this allows me to represent what are often considered unthinkable experiences. Questions that I seek to answer through my art practice are often about the subjectivity of reality-- how so many experiences that I’ve had have been regarded as “not real”, how my struggles with physical and mental health and gender lead people to believe that I am not enough. Through my art I hope to engage individuals in questioning exactly whose reality dictates what is considered possible in society.
Critically Endangered
2019
9x7 copper plate with etching and gold pigment
This piece was part of my exploration of how guilt and Christianity relates to current issues regarding animal extinctions. By utilizing the classic religious iconography of the gold Madonna halo combined with the Amur Leopard, I am purposefully exalting a critically endangered animal to a holy status in an attempt to exemplify the importance of animals.
Sanctify
2019
9x12 copper plate with etching and rosin
This print explores the connection between Christianity and nature. The tiger explores a strange landscape that is a mix of a cathedral and a garden. In making this piece I explored my feelings about colonialism and the way it has impacted human relationships with nature. Western religion, capitalism, and the treatment of the planet as a commodity are all historically intertwined.
Them
2018
15x18 monotype with 12x16 woodblock
A nonbinary person posing with bleeding heart flowers. This piece addresses ideas of the limits of what is considered natural and what is considered beautiful under dominant societal narratives. The flora I chose are said to have healing properties that I thought fit with my project about beauty: bleeding hearts are said to allow unconditional love; which I believe is important for one’s self and towards others, while chestnut flowers are said to protect those who have endured difficulties, which is a given for most transgender people.
Him
2018
15x18 monotype with 12x16 woodblock
When I made these prints, I was dealing with a lot of mixed emotions about bodies and the perception of trans and gender non conforming bodies. The model for the figure with the deer skull is a trans man. Magnolia flowers are said to aid in any healing processes. I believe that learning to love your body is a form of healing, and also one of the themes I wanted to explore with these pieces.
Affliction
2021
11x14 oil painting on canvas
The deep browns and greens of the painting symbolize illness. Drawing monsters has always been a way to make sense of painful experiences. For me, there is a relationship between monsters and the way that society views disability and queer identities. Both seemingly outside of the realm of possibility, and pushed to the margins.
Turkey Vulture
2021
11x14 oil painting on canvas
Vultures are a well known symbol of death and disease. However, they occupy an ecological niche due to their scavenging that actually decreases the prevalence of diseases like rabies. Similarly to the other piece in the series, the browns and greens represent illness. The empty, otherworldly eyes of the vulture, and its mess of feathers help to demonstrate how helpless one can feel in the face of difficult situations.