Teresa Robinette, American
The Owners, 2017
This piece depicts a man and a woman sitting in front of what is assumed to be their home. The painting radiates a sense of eerie tension. Though the bottom of the painting contains beautiful flowers, the grass appears yellow and dead and a large black cloud looms from behind the stark white house. This piece likely alludes to the predicament of individuals living in areas of Appalachia where coal is prevalent. The couple pictured appears tired and worn down, though they seem relatively young, and a black dust coats their home in the background. The painting itself contains organic compounds from the Appalachian Mountains. The black areas are crafted from broken down charcoal and coal, creating an interesting dichotomy as one sees coal within the painting causing damage and despair, while the coal on the canvas is used as a means of creating. Label by Grace Moser