STICKS & LOCKS
18″ x 24″ Mixed Media on Oak Tag
Him look skinny bro. Is him eatin’ enough? Him look shaggy too. Why him lettin’ da beard a-grow? Him a rasta mon, is him now? Rollin’ ina de herb fields pickin’ ganja out. Sing a reggae song ‘n’ hum de tune. From when-a de sun come up till him see de moon. Beat of de drum make-a him move him feet. Sun, it be shinin’ ‘n’ de weather is sweet. Him locks be-a blowing ina de wind. ‘N” him singin’, him sing it ‘n’ bring it again.
THE TREE OF
40″ x 48″ Mixed Media on Wood
No better than a homeless man walking dark roads. All part of this together so the story goes. No worse than the best teacher molding lives. You’ve got to open up your eyes. Judge not your sister she may help you some day. Lend a voice to your brother to help him find his way. Negative thinking, go away let me be. Concentrate only on the positivity. Love your family now, cause them not a tear. Keep this tree strong while you are still here. Roots go way back, back when we were free. I’m where you are from. We’re from the same old tree.
SUGAR DADDY
24″ x 48″ Mixed Media on Wood
Try to give you what you want. Hope you take only what you need. Just can’t be no sugar daddy. Fancy clothes, cars, phones, diamond rings. None of those things are my thing. Fake boobs, make-up, nail salons. I’m passin’ by and movin’ on. Gucci, Prada, Louie V. Big name bags don’t impress me. Who are you really? What’s inside? Behind the smoke and mirrors that you hide. What moves you? What breaks your heart? Are you funny and are you smart? Are you worth more than what you buy? I need to get into your mind. Just can’t be no sugar daddy.
SHE IS FREE
12″ x 24″ Mixed Media on Omega Bond
Black shadow dancing on Heaven’s horizon. Chains could never hold you back. Hopes and dreams and misery fade like exhaled cigarette smoke in the sky. She is free. Butterfly wings leave empty caves hollow and cold without feeling, without sound. Blurred reality mixed with dreams create memories that never happened. She is free. Drifting in and out of subconscious thoughts of light, scent and sound. Cold sweat night terrors and racing hearts. Three in the morning thoughts seem to last so long. Black shadow dancing right through the gates. Broken chains hang from her wrists. She is free…
FLOWEBURST
10″ x 15″ Mixed Media on Wood
Seed gets planted, just doesn’t grow. Not enough water, not enough sun. Needed more attention. Seed gets planted, something begins to show. Little more water, little more sun. Little more attention. Seed gets planted… BLAM!!! Something begins to SPRouT! SPRiNG! FLoW! More water!!! More sun!!! This could be big, this could be the one! Stars aligning. Planetary shifts. Cycles of the universe, bring this seed a gift. Let this flower grow, let it have a thirst. Let this growth be big. Let it be… a Floweburst. Happening for a reason, not just because of chance. Floweburst do your thing. Floweburst just dance, dance… dance.
GROWING UP (GIFTED)
8″ x 36″ Mixed Media on Wood
I never really got why we’re here. Just look at all we build in our lives and we all disappear. A few of us are born with so much while most of us just chasing down a dream that we just can’t touch. So why we try so hard in this place? When pain and suffering is a guarantee and happiness is a phase. I wonder if one day we’re at peace or will this whole world just become like the middle east?
But when I (we) was (were) younger, when I (we) was (were) younger I had the answers, I’ve got to say. But all of my answers, now that I’m older turned into questions, in front of me
I wonder where we go when we die. If there is anything past our lost sun and our sky? Cuz airports only take us so high. Is it hidden in the stars? What’s the answer to your soul lying? I wonder do we get to come back. I wonder if I will remember these questions I’ve asked. Or will I just start over again? I hope it’s not too hard to find all of my old friends.
I wonder if we get one true love. Or maybe there’s a few out there. Or maybe not even one. I wonder if it’s made up by man. I wonder if love is what we make with our own two hands. I wonder why I write all these songs. I wonder if you know what you’re saying when you sing along. And will you know my name when I’m gone? Or are you just too sick of these love songs? ~SOJA
SERVING UP STARS
10″ x 18″ Mixed Media Sculpture
Stars… out in space. Stars… in Mr. Yankee’s planetarium. Stars… of sports. Of movies. Used to guide ships. Used to teach. Used for entertainment. In Lucky Charms. In songs. To show achievement. To rate. As tattoos. As a Christmas tree topper. To shine. To twinkle. To light up this planet. We are all stars…
BROTHERS
18″ x 24″ Mixed Oak Tag
Memories of yesterdays past remind me of how much fun we had roughing up, beating up and growing up together. No matter how many punches were thrown, names were called or fights were won and lost… we were brothers… are brothers. The blood runs deep and we share this common bond that no one else in the world has. I’d give up my life for either one of you and I feel you’d both do the same. I love you brother(s).
WHILE I LIGHT MY SPLIFF
18″ x 24″ Mixed Media on Oak Tag
Excuse me while I light my spliff. Good God, I gotta take a lift. From reality I just can’t drift. That’s why I am staying with this riff. Easy Skanking / Bob Marley & The Wailers
Marijuana: The Weed of Wisdom In Rastafari culture, the herb “ganja” (marijuana) was regarded as “wisdomweed,” and Rasta leaders urged that it be smoked as a religious rite, alleging that it was found growing on the grave of King Solomon and citing biblical passages, such as Psalms 104:14, to attest to its sacramental properties: “He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle, and herb for the service of man, that he may bring forth food out of the earth.”
CIRCLE SPACE
8.5″ x 11″ Mixed Media on Board
Why circles? Why do I paint so many circles? Is it because they are the perfect shape? Is it because they are infinite? We have circles of friends. Everything comes full circle. Circle of life. Perfect circle. Inner Circle. 360 degrees in a circle. Walk around in circles. Circle circle circle. It doesn’t sound like a word anymore. Circle.
SHE WANTS
12″ x 18″ Mixed Media on Wood
I haven’t seen your face before, but you are the most beautiful person in the world. I’ve yet to hear you make a sound, but cannot wait to listen to what you’ll have to say. I don’t know yet what you want, but I know you will have dreams. I don’t know what you’ll need, but I’ll give you everything. I cannot wait to take your little hands into the palms of mine. I cannot wait to love you until the end of time.
THE BOOM (SOLD)
24″ x 48″ Mixed Media on Wood
I remember when I felt it. BOOM! It hit me so hard right upside my head. I never saw someone so beautiful. I never knew that feeling existed. After a while of getting to know her more I felt it again. BOOM! This time it was stronger. This time it hit harder. This time it meant more than what I had seen on the surface. The effects of it have been rippling through time ever since. Over smooth surfaces and over rocks. Over the moon, around the sun and back. It has weathered storms. It has grown through the worst of times. It has flourished through the best of them. BOOM! Can you see it? BOOM! Can you feel it? BOOM! It has been well over four years in the making, but today I celebrate these past four with her. I love you Nicole… with a BOOM!
NESTA
8.5″ x 11″ Mixed Media on Silk Screen
Did you know that Bob’s middle name wasn’t Nesta? Did you know that when he was born his father was 60 years old and his mother was only 16 years old? Did you know that his father was a white man? Did you know Bob died when he was 36 years old? His last words to his oldest son David “Ziggy” Marley were “Money can’t buy life.” Did you know that Bob’s name wasn’t Bob? It wasn’t Robert. It was Nesta. Nesta Robert Marley. If you haven’t see the new Marley movie by Kevin Macdonald it is out on DVD. Totally worth watching for people who know nothing about Bob, casual fans and huge fans like me. Long live Nesta!
BOWL
Sculpture
Let me introduce you to Bowl. So, I’m over at my mom’s house about to leave and she’s like oh hey, do you want this bowl for your project? She pulls out this bowl that I had made back in college that I never finished. It was just this raw thing waiting for new skin. I was like sure, I’ll take that back and make it look a little nicer. It can be part of the project. This is Bowl. Say hello…
ELECTRIC CITY
24″ x 48″ Mixed Media on Wood
You could feel it as you walked through the city. There was this sort of buzz in the air. Everyone was talking about it in some way. Everyone was going to be there. The max capacity would not hold the amount of people that wanted to see his work. Some of them would have to peek in through the windows. There was wine and hors d’