Night Shift: Employees Only

𝘌𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘰𝘺𝘦𝘦𝘴 𝘖𝘯𝘭𝘺 (2024) Digital painting From the series 𝙉𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙎𝙝𝙞𝙛𝙩

𝘌𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘰𝘺𝘦𝘦𝘴 𝘖𝘯𝘭𝘺 was inspired by a winter pickup around dusk in Muscatine, Iowa. A stark metal door bathed in warm light stands out against the cool blues of twilight.

While I worked on this scene, I let my mind wander a bit. I used my imagination and asked myself some questions about what I was creating.

What if that door opened right now? Who might step out? What stories could they tell about the work that goes on inside?

How does a familiar place change as day fades to night?

What goes on behind those walls? Are there conversations or decisions being made that might affect this small town?

Who uses this door every day? What are their hopes, their worries?

What lies beyond the pool of light? In the shadows, what decisions are being made, what work is being done? Is someone inside working to feed their family? Are they saving up for school, or dreaming of a life beyond this small town? What personal stories unfold each time this door opens and closes?

How many hopes, struggles, and quiet triumphs has this set of double doors witnessed? As one looks at this piece, how might this single point of light in Iowa connect to a vast web of human aspiration? What futures, yet unwritten, could be linked to this slice of Midwest twilight? In capturing this moment, I found myself reflecting on the countless untold stories that surround us every day, hidden behind these ordinary doors and routine moments.

Employees Only | 2024 | 4320 x 7680px | Digital Painting