Work
Sighing cowboy, oil on canvas, 20x14 in.
Lights out buck, oil on canvas, 20x14 in.
Burning cowboy, oil on canvas, 24x18 in.
Axe on table, oil on canvas, 22x21 in.
Mug on table, oil on canvas, 24x18 in.
Bio
BFA, Painting, Kent State University
Working primarily with oil on canvas, Calvin’s work explores the contradictions of masculinity through figures caught between the pressure to appear strong and the vulnerability they struggle to acknowledge. Using the cowboy as a symbol of American masculine identity, he examines how extreme ideals of strength can produce loneliness, anger, selfishness, and self-destructive behavior.
Moving between abstraction and representation, his paintings combine bold color and rough handling of paint with humorous, cartoonish imagery. These elements convey the absurdity of trying to fulfill rigid ideals of manhood, while dark, unstable spaces suggest the emotional toll of pursuing those expectations.
Sighing cowboy, oil on canvas, 20x14 in.
Lights out buck, oil on canvas, 20x14 in.
Burning cowboy, oil on canvas, 24x18 in.
Axe on table, oil on canvas, 22x21 in.
Mug on table, oil on canvas, 24x18 in.
BFA, Painting, Kent State University
Working primarily with oil on canvas, Calvin’s work explores the contradictions of masculinity through figures caught between the pressure to appear strong and the vulnerability they struggle to acknowledge. Using the cowboy as a symbol of American masculine identity, he examines how extreme ideals of strength can produce loneliness, anger, selfishness, and self-destructive behavior.
Moving between abstraction and representation, his paintings combine bold color and rough handling of paint with humorous, cartoonish imagery. These elements convey the absurdity of trying to fulfill rigid ideals of manhood, while dark, unstable spaces suggest the emotional toll of pursuing those expectations.