Trenton Doyle Hancock - Water Ground Hell Sky
I “discovered” Trenton Doyle Hancock (@Trenton_Doyle_Hancock) yesterday and it was like picking up the current issue of any long running comic book series that you’re new to. You won’t have a clue what’s going on nor who anyone is, but the visuals and story might be intriguing enough for you to want to find out more.
So here’s a primer, in case the super helpful gallerist that took pity on me and explained all this isn’t around when you visit:
Hancock is 48, American, Black, and was raised in Texas. For the past twenty-plus years he’s been working on what he calls the Moundverse — an ever evolving world of characters that partly dates back to an imaginative childhood triggered out of necessity when his ultra-religious family threw out all his toys. Yup, literally.
There are creatures called Mounds, who have enemies called Vegans. Read into that what you will. There’s also a superhero named Torpedo Boy, and his grandmother was a huge influence on his work.
Since all this was being explained while looking at one of his big, vibrant, intricate and overwhelming works, I started to zone out. I’ve probably missed a few things.
Large mixed-media paintings/collages, primarily made from faux fur, felt and bottle caps, have a hyperactive comic book quality. Small acrylics demonstrate his range extends into abstracts and illustrative portraiture. And if you ask nicely the gallery will show you his rather more genteel and calming landscape made of fabric they have hidden in the back room.
The release states his works “come from deeply personal experience” but it’s hard to ignore some of the overtly political, racial and social imagery. Then again, for Black Americans it’s practically impossible to separate those elements from the personal.
I’ve seen a lot of in-your-face art that leaves my mind as soon as I leave the gallery, and I didn’t expect Hancock’s works to have stuck with me the way they have.
At Hales Gallery (@HalesGallery) until 12 Mar
Follow @Trenton_Doyle_Hancock on Instagram for more info about the artist