Craig Hawkins teaches drawing, painting and foundations.
tchawkins@valdosta.edu
craighawkinsart.com
Instagram: @craighawkinsart
tchawkins@valdosta.edu
craighawkinsart.com
Instagram: @craighawkinsart
Dear Vimala - 42 3/4" x 42 3/4", pastel on paper, 2018
Artist Statement
In 2010, I began exploring the question: Could a painting empower, promote, or exhibit the process of healing from a disfiguring event? In 2012, I learned about an organization supporting burn victims who are all living below the poverty line in India. The descriptions of these victims, many of them victims of domestic violence, and their stories of pain and strength sparked in me a desire to research and create works of art that would promote healing by honoring victims and their value through portraiture. Humbly acknowledging that my empathy could never bring justice, I tenderly dared to imagine the marks of suffering made beautiful, scars made new through art, and to offer a means for viewers to respond. These works mark a near decade of imagining and cultivating a way to create toward that end. Beneath layers of paint and storied markings, each portrait carries gold leaf that is often unseen. Other times it appears in cracks and bares the story of a life inherently valuable and worthy of honor and love.
See the whole series at: craighawkinsart.com/beautiful
Bio
CRAIG HAWKINS (b. 1978)
Hawkins earned an MFA in Drawing and Painting from the Lamar Dodd School of Art. He works as a professional studio artist and teaches at Valdosta State University. Exploring ideas about what we all believe and whether or not it is true, Hawkins’ faith gives momentum to the creation of works exhibited nationally, and internationally. Mason Fine Art of Atlanta, GA and Anne Neilson Fine Art of Charlotte, NC represent his work.
In 2010, I began exploring the question: Could a painting empower, promote, or exhibit the process of healing from a disfiguring event? In 2012, I learned about an organization supporting burn victims who are all living below the poverty line in India. The descriptions of these victims, many of them victims of domestic violence, and their stories of pain and strength sparked in me a desire to research and create works of art that would promote healing by honoring victims and their value through portraiture. Humbly acknowledging that my empathy could never bring justice, I tenderly dared to imagine the marks of suffering made beautiful, scars made new through art, and to offer a means for viewers to respond. These works mark a near decade of imagining and cultivating a way to create toward that end. Beneath layers of paint and storied markings, each portrait carries gold leaf that is often unseen. Other times it appears in cracks and bares the story of a life inherently valuable and worthy of honor and love.
See the whole series at: craighawkinsart.com/beautiful
Bio
CRAIG HAWKINS (b. 1978)
Hawkins earned an MFA in Drawing and Painting from the Lamar Dodd School of Art. He works as a professional studio artist and teaches at Valdosta State University. Exploring ideas about what we all believe and whether or not it is true, Hawkins’ faith gives momentum to the creation of works exhibited nationally, and internationally. Mason Fine Art of Atlanta, GA and Anne Neilson Fine Art of Charlotte, NC represent his work.