Texas Hill Country Psalms

These works were created as part of an artist residency at Laity Lodge in Texas. I was there with two close friends, poet Brett Foster and sculptor Roger Feldman. I was really struck by the landscape, which was so different than what I was used to. It seemed a hard place, more desert than anything else, and it was made evident by the way the flora grew there; low to the ground, as if hunched over, and spiked in a defensive posture. Yet in spite of the conditions life found a way. It even grew abundantly. Even the bones of boars sang that song.

About David

David J. P. Hooker lives and works in the greater Chicago area, where he is an artist and Chair of the Art Department at Wheaton College. He received an M.F.A. in Ceramics from Kent State University and a B.A. in English from Furman University.

His artistic practice explores the inherent value of materials, objects, and places, hoping to find ways to better connect and understand the world we live in. Recently he was awarded the Dunhuang Ceramic Residency and spent two months as artist in residence in Lanzhou, China.

When David is not freaking out over deadlines, he enjoys spending time with his wife, Elaine, his children Abbey and Samuel, and the family cat, Evee. He also enjoys baseball, BBQ, and tennis—not necessarily in that order.