FAVORITE SON by Reggie Singleton

The emotion that inspired this piece is a mother’s love for her son. I was inspired to create this work by a close friend. The love she has for her son conquers all. Seeing this, I was reminded of my own childhood. I grew up in a abusive household, and my mom was all I had to cling to. These emotions are what I took with me as I chose my wood, sketched the forms, cut, carved, sanded and composed. Each form is created separately, doubling the wood to give it a high relief from the frame. I’ve worked with a jigsaw for many years and can now use this tool to express my feelings. The forms are then sanded and stained, each of a different tone to create varying texture. They are then composed to create one seminal sculpture. I then create the frame to embody and complete the piece. I treat each wood form as floating brushstrokes. They dance together throughout the piece. The expression of motherly love is what I aim to convey in this work.

Reggie is a painter who expresses his emotions on canvas using the medium of pen and ink. He was first drawn to ink upon seeing the work of Albrecht Durer and later discovered the expressionist works of Mark Rothko and Al Loving. A meeting with Charles McGee in 2010 inspired Singleton to explore more non-representational works, five of which are permanently displayed in the WSU BioEngineering building. His ink paintings have been displayed in over 20 gallery exhibitions including Scarab Club, where he earned 3rd place in the 108th Gold Medal Exhibition juried by Shirley Woodson.