Continuing my Fellow Worker series, portraits of UC and Cincinnati community members prompt re-examination of ideas of labor and value in art, craft, work, and life. Lampshading royal portraiture tradition, these portraits humanize rather than deify, connect rather than distance. They argue for the value of craft in an era of deskilling, factory-warehouse art, collapsing art markets, bursting NFT bubbles, and AI generation. These pieces humanize those whose care enriches us, and whose labor we rely on. They are a mirror for viewers to understand their own alienation from their labor, and a window to solidarity with all working people.

In addition to the portraits, in this show I included ceramics and textile works with wall text detailing the hours of labor invested in each piece and a silent auction sheet. My time at DAAP has been dominated by a debate over what kind of art is worth making, particularly with a focus on concept rather than my highly technical mode of working. I wanted to put this to the test, and provide real data as to whether my audience and demographic value highly crafted, technically skilled works over abstracted, deskilled, high-concept pieces.