Mystikawaii Kloud Castle 2015

In March of 2015, I helped install an exhibition called Mystikawaii Kloud Castle exhibit while volunteering as a gallery assistant at Dope Chapel in Norman, Oklahoma. Looking back on it now, that show still stands out as one of my favorite projects I have ever been part of.

I am originally from Lawton, Oklahoma, and I graduated with a Fine Arts degree with a focus on painting. After graduation, I honestly had no idea what I was going to do. There was not much opportunity for me in Lawton, and I was bouncing between living situations while trying to figure out what my future might look like if I stayed there. That summer, I got a call from Eric Piper about a possible job at a screen printing shop called Bigfoot Creative in Norman. At that point, I had already been making weekend trips up to Norman and had started getting familiar with some of the local artists and musicians by attending shows and events at Downtown Sound, which later became Dope Chapel.

What really pulled me in was seeing artists creating their own opportunities. People were installing their own shows, organizing events, and just making things happen for themselves. That kind of energy was something I did not see much of in Lawton. My friend May and I tried to do similar things there, but the arts community felt spread out and disconnected. There was not really a central space for everyone to come together and build momentum.

Moving to Norman was a bit of a culture shock in the best way. The community felt interconnected, with students from the art school mixing with long established local artists. Once I started working at Bigfoot Creative, it felt natural to also get involved with Dope Chapel. I began volunteering and working gallery hours during events, but Misty Kauai Cloud Castle was the show where I really jumped in and helped with the installation.

The exhibition was curated by Jenna Bryan, who is a longtime friend of mine and the person who taught me everything I know about screen printing. My main role in supporting the show was helping bring a mural design to life. Along with Derek Adams, I worked on an oversized mural that stretched across one side of the gallery. We mounted three four by eight Masonite panels directly to the wall, painted the background, and added extra shapes and details. The main image was a floating, mystical castle drifting through the clouds, based on Jen’s original design.

On the opposite side of the space, there was another mural that continued the narrative. This one had a darker tone. I collaborated with Eric Piper on that piece, with Eric handling much of the illustration work in the foreground. In the background, there was a large dark city, dead trees, and the floating cloud castle hovering in the sky, tying the two murals together.

Overall, the project was just incredibly fun. Revisiting it now has been meaningful as I work through presenting my past work online and moving through my projects chronologically. These murals were completed in 2015, which feels wild to say out loud now. Even so, it remains one of the most important shows I have been part of. It helped solidify that I was going to be involved in the Norman and Oklahoma City art scene moving forward.

It is funny to think about how many of the processes we used back then are still things I rely on today. We had multiple meetings for this show and often felt like we did not really know what we were doing. We were fresh out of school and figuring things out as we went. Somehow, we made it work, and that experience shaped a lot of how I approach collaborative projects even now.

I am pulling from the archives to share the overview of this show. You can watch a video from the opening night below.

Me and my bestie Melon the night of the opening. I also performed some songs from my trip hop album that night as well!