Spotlight Artist

Stephen Proski

Midwest
Artist profile photo
Featured in New American Paintings

Artist Statement

My work is a response to what I see, and what I see is different from what you see. I explore the complexities of sightlessness in a sight-driven world. Squinting through the clutter and clamor of reality, my paintings reflect the whimsy and absurdity of our post-cultural landscape framed through a tinted comedic lens. Influenced by the chaos occurring in cartoons—a limitless universe without precaution or repercussion—I find logic in punchlines. Gags such as anvils dropping, painted faux tunnels, and exploding pianos inform my decision making when it comes to making a gesture. Dismal yet all at once humorous, my subject matter stems from past/present moments that haunt and eat away at me, producing a series of conundrums that writhe on the brink of a painterly language, blurring together elements of both collage and quilt–making. Compositions are cut into pieces and sewn back together by hand to create remixed arrangements. Resounding amplified lullabies under a blanket of distortion.

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