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Jan. 29th-April 26th, 2026: "In Her Place," The Frist Art Museum, Nashville, TN, Curators: Katie Delmez (Senior Curator), Shaun Giles, and Sai Clayton
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"Birds of Prey" 8 feet (96 inches) x 8 feet (96 inches) x 2.5 inches deep, oil on board 2025, Photographer John Schweikert
"Birds of Prey" Detail, oil on board 2025, Photographer John Schweikert
"Birds of Prey" Detail, oil on board 2025, Photographer John Schweikert
"Birds of Prey" Detail, oil on board 2025, Photographer John Schweikert
"Whispers of Hope" 5 inches x 7 inches (Framed 6"x8"), oil on board 2024-25, Photographer John Schweikert
"Whispers of Hope" 5 inches x 7 inches (Framed 6"x8"), oil on board 2024-25, Photographer John Schweikert
"Whispers of Hope" 5 inches x 7 inches (Framed 6"x8"), oil on board 2024-25, Photographer John Schweikert
"Whispers of Hope" 5 inches x 7 inches (Framed 6"x8"), oil on board 2024-25, Photographer John Schweikert
"Whispers of Hope" 5 inches x 7 inches (Framed 6"x8"), oil on board 2024-25, Photographer John Schweikert
Artist Statement:
"Birds of Prey and Whispers of Hope" is a textured, visceral painting series that explores the parallels between modern drones and predatory birds used in today’s warfare. Drawing from real-time drone footage and memorial images found on YouTube—particularly from the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza—the work interrogates how war is now fought, viewed, and consumed. These images reveal the fight for land, power, resources, and survival, often steeped in historical and religious tension. The paintings merge documentary references with expressive, thick applications of paint to underscore the human cost of war. Scenes of tanks, refugee camps, dead bodies, and displaced civilians are pixelated in the style of Minecraft, blurring the line between gaming, surveillance, and reality. War, in this context, becomes a distorted game—one of disruption, chance, and dehumanization.Painted on board with a skewed, off-kilter perspective, the work challenges viewers to reconsider the idea of a singular narrative. It asserts that war is never one-sided—it is layered, cyclical, and deeply complex. Through this fragmented lens, Birds of Prey critiques not just the machinery of war, but how we witness and process its ongoing devastation in the digital age.
"Birds of Prey and Whispers of Hope" is a textured, visceral painting series that explores the parallels between modern drones and predatory birds used in today’s warfare. Drawing from real-time drone footage and memorial images found on YouTube—particularly from the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza—the work interrogates how war is now fought, viewed, and consumed. These images reveal the fight for land, power, resources, and survival, often steeped in historical and religious tension. The paintings merge documentary references with expressive, thick applications of paint to underscore the human cost of war. Scenes of tanks, refugee camps, dead bodies, and displaced civilians are pixelated in the style of Minecraft, blurring the line between gaming, surveillance, and reality. War, in this context, becomes a distorted game—one of disruption, chance, and dehumanization.Painted on board with a skewed, off-kilter perspective, the work challenges viewers to reconsider the idea of a singular narrative. It asserts that war is never one-sided—it is layered, cyclical, and deeply complex. Through this fragmented lens, Birds of Prey critiques not just the machinery of war, but how we witness and process its ongoing devastation in the digital age.