David Shelton GalleryRobert Hodge and Brandon Thompson

Robert Hodge (b. 1979, Houston) is an interdisciplinary artist whose practice reflects themes of memory and commemoration. Grounded in the rich continuum of African American history and cultural expression, Hodge’s work celebrates resilience and reclamation, with his commemorations of African American musical and cultural icons serving to both preserve the past and illuminate the present. With a nod to sampling culture and Rauschenberg’s principle of working in the gap between art and life, Hodge’s collage-based works pair urban detritus and found objects with cut-out images, lyrics and other signifiers of the African-American experience, forming a duality of meaning wherein fragments of everyday urban life become conduits of artistic expression.

Hodge studied visual art at the Pratt Institute in New York and the Atlanta College of Art. He has exhibited in numerous national and international institutions including Houston Museum of African American Culture; Project Row Houses (Houston, TX); Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; Contemporary Arts Museum (Houston, TX); New Gallery of Modern Art (Charlotte, NC); and Contemporary Museum of East Africa (Nairobi, Kenya). He was an artist-in-residence at Artpace, San Antonio (2017); the Joan Mitchell Foundation, New Orleans (2015); and Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, Maine (2014), and has received grants from the Joan Mitchell Foundation, Houston Arts Alliance and The Idea Fund.

His work is included in ‘Slowed and Throwed’, a group exhibition, curated by Patricia Restrepo, at Contemporary Art Museum Houston. Other current projects include “Two and 1⁄2 years: A Musical Celebration to the Spirit of Juneteenth”, an album that he executive produced, as well as his traveling installation titled “The Beauty Box.”

 

Brandon Thompson (b. 1992, Cedar Hill, TX) grew up in the small town of Cedar Hill just outside of Dallas. His work is primarily focused on oil, acrylic, oil pastel and crayons for two-dimensional pieces and wood and clay for three-dimensional pieces. Throughout, he incorporates a range of vibrant bright colors in swift motions to always suggest movement. His work draws from his experience of growing up in Cedar Hill and takes inspiration from the black experience in the South and the Bible Belt. Subjects are taken from his neighborhood, from the styles of dress, hair styles, music, and slang, all put into art. As Thompson states to summarize his work, "It’s just a bunch of country stuff."

Thompson earned a BA in Graphic Design from the University of Texas at Arlington in 2018, the same year that PaperCity named him the best young painter in Dallas. He has recently exhibited at Ro2 Gallery (Dallas), PRP (Dallas), Swim Gallery (San Francisco) and David Shelton Gallery (Houston), among others. Thompson was selected by Rebecca Matalon, Curator at Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, to be included in New American Paintings (2019) and has received reveiws and press coverage in the Dallas Morning News, Glasstire, PaperCity, D Magazine, Neveszn and Houston City Book, among others. 

 

Robert Hodge: DNA will be a site specific studio exhibition at the gallery opening late March.