Biography
“Life has a genesis,” says Texas based mixed media artist Ty Clark, “and a resolution.” Clark explores the complexity of that universal genesis and searches for its elusive resolution through convulsive sketches, slathers of paint, and poetic strips of text applied to large-scale canvas. Clark evokes a lifetime of art-making, cultural exploration, literature, and deep inquiry into the human consciousness in his frenzied, gestural technique. Having grown up under the influence of his uncle Conway “Jiggs” Pierson, a prominent sculptor and Raku artist, Clark has been cultivating his soulful and energetic painting style for decades, a dedication and skill that shows in every new direction his work takes.
“Every piece has a specific message,” Clark says, “my hope is that my work drives the viewer to an internal conversation of memory and meaning.” Clark paints and sketches in a studio surrounded by poetic and artistic muses from the past: Maya Angelou, Rainer Maria Rilke, Andy Warhol, and Jean-Michel Basquiat, of whom Clark derives his pen-name SAMO4PREZ. As if transcribing prophetic missives, Clark works frenetically, moving rapidly from one point of canvas to another in no clearly marked path, applying layers of text and paint, charcoal and oil in a dizzying assembly. Clark’s rapid-fire style is akin to designing patchwork quilts: he deconstructs artistic traditions like graffiti painting, abstract expressionism, and Pop art, and then binds them together in a fresh, contemporary, graphic style.