Weightlessness and Color

Experience the sensation of weightlessness that hammocks offer. Randy Shull explores how he communicates this feeling through his masterful use of color and materials, transforming the ancient Pre-Hispanic form into abstract artworks.

1. Briefly describe the work you do.

For 18 years I have lived and maintained a studio practice in the Yucatán peninsula of Mexico. The region is still very connected to Mayan traditions, including the weaving of hammocks, a centuries old tradition done at stand-up looms in homes throughout the peninsula. The hammocks are used ubiquitously throughout the region to siesta, to sleep, and to escape the heat. Trained as a furniture designer, I see the hammock as one of the most elemental forms of furniture. I use the hammock as a canvas for abstract paintings and consider these paintings a collaboration between experimentation and tradition.

2. What or who inspires your work and how has that influenced both your work and your identity as an artist?

I am interested in the teachings and practices of the artists and faculty that studied and taught at Black Mountain College in North Carolina, where I live part of the year. Specifically, the ideas of chance that John Cage embraced and the experimentalism that was the guiding philosophy of the school. I’m also intrigued by the traditional methods of making that I find throughout Mexico.

3. Making Art traditionally carry cultural, historical, or personal narratives. How do you incorporate these narratives in your contemporary pieces?

In the current body of work, I’m acknowledging the traditional Mexican weavers and the legendary Mexican architect Luis Barragan’s use of color. Barragan was a pioneering architect who was instrumental in incorporating modernist principles that I find relevant and transferable beyond the scope of architecture.

4. Do you aim for a particular emotional or sensory experience in audience interaction with your pieces, considering that textiles or mixed media artworks can evoke a tactile response?

The idea of weightlessness is interesting to me, because the hammock induces that sensation when it’s in use. I began thinking about how I might incorporate that feeling into the work. I thought a lot about this idea and I looked to nature as a source. I found the butterfly a compelling inspiration, not only for its weightless qualities but for its ability to metamorphosize throughout its life cycle.

5. Given that textiles and mixed media often generate residuals, how do you specifically approach sustainability and work to minimize environmental impact in your artistic practice?

I aim to help support the small communities that produce these hammocks by paying fair market price for hundreds of hammocks every year that go into the production of my paintings. In the near future, I will be introducing a hammock exchange with the people in these small villages. I will work with a representative of the community to exchange new hammocks for old ones of any condition and make a large painting that can be displayed in a municipal building in their community.

6. Get inspired!

INSTAGRAM: @shull_randy
WEBSITE: randyshull.com
REPRESENTED BY: Tracey Morgan Gallery, Asheville, NC; Alejandra Topete Gallery, Mexico City; Artsuite, Raleigh, NC