Tucked just beneath the edges of tree bark are brilliant technicolor paintings by artist Shane McAdams. Collecting walnut, ash, and oak woods, he gives these rough textures a psychedelic twist. The organic shapes of the cross-sectioned trees create the perfect frame for McAdam's vibrant technique, which pairs ballpoint pens and resin. Colors appear to drip from the large forms as his seamless application creates an illusion that this sight occurs naturally.
McAdams grew up in the desert southwest, and as a child he was mesmerized by the surrounding landscape, specifically sandstone outcroppings. “I will always marvel over how the incremental effects of time can create something more structured and unique than I may ever make with my own hands,” he writes. This realization is reflected in his paintings, which fuse nature with the synthetic. To craft them, the artist prefers to use everyday materials like ballpoint pens. He handles the utensils in non-traditional ways, and by doing so, stretches the limits of their capabilities. These sort of techniques also require the work of many layers and much time, and it could be seen as McAdams' homage to nature and its meticulous formations.
