Burnings

"...THE FIRE...IS ALCHEMICAL, MAGICALLY REINFORCING A MISTRUST OF THE ART MARKET WHILE DESPERATELY INSPIRING THE NEED TO BUY A PAINTING. PACKING QUITE THE ROAR INTO SUCH A QUIET LITTLE SHOW, WILLIS IS AN ARTIST TO WATCH."
Danielle Kelley, Las Vegas Weekly .

Series
Acrylic gesso, flame, smoke, canvas, wood, blue painter’s tape
2009-2014
Dimensions vary

I loved the intense and unforgiving sun of the Nevada desert. In spite of the heat, my mom hoarded decades of keepsakes inside our childhood home, which never saw the light of day. The house caught on fire from a neighboring firework one year and burned many of her collections. In one of my earliest series titled Burnings (2009-2014), I used an open flame to render these subjects and themes. My process involved masking canvas with tape, burning the exposed gesso surface with fire, and allowing the smoke and heat to darken and collect. The result was a display of sepia-toned commodities, spectacular in their pattern, yet restrained by their medium and form.