SHAWN HUCKINS: THE BIRDS WILL SING
April 10 - May 8, 2021
April 10 - May 8, 2021
Shawn Huckins is a tour de force of technical skill and wit - referencing our sometimes rosy view of history and our complicated present in these exquisitely painted canvases. This series, “The Birds Will Sing,” takes its title from the sweetly bucolic title of an old Cajun folk song. The song, instead of following the title’s lead, turns out to be a murder ballad. This painting series follows in its depiction of what appears at first glance to be simply breathtaking landscapes but which are overlaid with wistfully dark statements about contemporary love.
Shawn Huckins is known for both his brilliant humor and technical skill as a painter. In his most notable series to date, ‘The American Revolution Revolution’ and ‘The American ___tier,’ Huckins satirizes social media, asking whether the devolution of language in the face of technological advancement weakens our ability to empathize and connect to one another in a meaningful way. By layering early American portraiture and landscape with text taken directly from the internet, Huckins confronts the priorities of our society in comparison to simpler times. What would George Washington post on Facebook? How would Lewis and Clark communicate their progress westward via Twitter? READ MORE