Danny Hein
Region: Midwest
I am inspired by isolation and nature. My work draws on memories of growing up in a rural Indiana, my personal folklore, and the odd, unglamorous sensuality of country life. I am interested in sensationalizing almost embarrassing romantic scenes of naïve sexuality emotion, and sentimentality. I consider my drawings as modern, old-timey images that pull from antique American mass-produced prints, postcards, and magazine illustrations. I want my work to be viewed in this way, like they could be sent in the mail, collected, and traded.
I work from a growing stash of personal snapshots and a few borrowed images that I crop, scale, and arrange. I work in watercolor because of its rich and imperfect nature, and for its traditional use in sappy art and the coloring of antique prints.
It is my contention that personal culture is more than a collection of our refined, acquired tastes. Isolation strips us down to the dark, intimate relationships with our bodies, our emotions, and the natural world. People are more beautiful and interesting when they shed their slickness and savvy.