In The Wake

About the Work

“In the Wake” explores rejection through a contorted figure—resting or recoiling—captured in a moment of emotional withdrawal. Expressive brushwork and a muted color pallet eschew realism, allowing the viewer to glimpse the interior landscape of the figure. The thrifted frame, once discarded, adds another layer of quiet refusal. Together, the painting and frame become a physical manifestation of rejection, imploring the viewer to attend to the marks rejection has left in them.

About the Artist

Devin Hammons is an artist based in New Orleans. Working mostly in the traditional medium of oil paint, Hammons imparts a sense of the uncanny into interior spaces. By subverting the viewer’s expectations of familiarity, Hammons’s work plays lightly with rejection– which the artist calls “the wonderful jolt of unrecognition.” Hammon pushes this theme further in repaintings, which the artist notes can stir feelings of loss in viewers who appreciated previous iterations. However, this process of rejection and transformation also brings to light the myriad ways in which artworks can be accepted or rejected throughout the artistic process.