ArtistBiography
Hayden White, based in Salt Lake City, Utah, creates “stream of subconsciousness” doodles that capture a multitude of happenings. His work suggests an openness to the present moment, displaying all perceptions and feelings within a given interaction. White’s art implies that perceived forms are not always as they seem and that there may be more to interpret than initially meets the eye.
Steven Larson offers this commentary on White’s work: “Hayden White’s work revolves solely around the sketchbook doodle, utilizing automatic processes free of pre-emptive forethought. A rejection of immediate sentiment seems prominent, yet the imagery sets a stage for interaction once a viewer commits to its engagement. The work poses a great question: What can be found during periods of being lost? At first glance, the imagery feels unsettling and is void of immediate understanding, yet its playfulness draws one in, as much curiosity is conjured. This curiosity supersedes the fear of inability to gain anthropological or epistemological foothold, threading through a potentially nightmarish event. Stagnant forms give way to the unfolding of animate creatures, born out of the void of unrecognizability. It is inside this very void, however, this discomfort, that one finds safety while deciphering what is happening; it seems okay to accept the invitation to dive into the conversation of post-surrealistic morphology, remembering that unknowingness equates to reinvention. The paintings take you in and spit you out in an abrupt yet lengthy fashion, causing realignment against notions of self in a new way. The ‘unstill life’ paintings serve as a reiteration of Memento mori, as the flux between inanimate and animate embodies stripped-down symbology, reminding us of the sardonic dark whimsy of existence as we pass through its continuum.”
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS
2023 ‘Apart Meant Three’ Exhibition, Finch Lane Gallery, Utah US
2023 Everything but the kitchen sink’ Group Show, La Luz De Jesus Gallery, LA, USA
