Lauren Powell Presents:

~ Clayton Skidmore ~

Apocalyptic Children’s Stories

Enchanted to present this sampling of cute and crude stories woven from watercolors by the most clever Clayton Skidmore. Each scene reads as a page from an apocalyptic children’s storybook, recalling the vignettes of the classic Little Golden Books, feeling immediately familiar. Even the scale of the work evokes the intimate space a viewer would occupy while holding a book. At first glance, the candy colored palette exhibits brightly colored landscapes, often containing charming critters, but the longer you look, the more tension will be revealed through details both subtle and overt. Ecological disasters , political turmoil, and power dynamics are just a few issues moved to the forefront as of late, and Clayton’s ability to both acknowledge and critique these topics disguised in whimsy aids in digesting the reality. The familiarity disarms the dark subject matter, allowing for a cheeky poke at society’s denial of these pressing problems, while also suggesting the optimism of these faulty parts working together for a better future. Through the chaos can come change, and these stories are important to share, particularly if we are looking for a happily ever after in the end.

Learn more about Clayton’s work here: https://claytonskidmore.com/ .

Clayton Skidmore was born in Dallas, TX (1986) and lives and works in Queens, NY. He received a BFA in Painting from the Kansas City Art Institute (2009) and an MFA from Cornell University (2017). Skidmore’s work has been shown at Art of This World, Online; Armenian Art Fair, Yerevan; Life Lessons Garage Project, New York; Lovaas Projects, Munich; Tjaden Gallery, Ithaca; Caelum Gallery, New York; Homeland Security, Dallas; and Dolphin Gallery in Kansas City, MO.