scott david finch:

the domesticated afterlife

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Artist Statement
To nobody's surprise, my first foray into graphic novel writing about Sethian gnostic emanationist cosmology, A Little World Made Cunningly, did not light the world on fire. It did, however, ignite something in me. I got excited about what narrative did to images and I couldn't wait to make something else if only I could find a new subject.
I was toying with an idea about a Pharaoh who dies and awakens to an afterlife of service in a food court at the mall, but it was very vague and formless. Then I heard an episode of the podcast, Radiolab, that told the story of Russian scientists' efforts to domesticate foxes. Somehow these two threads twisted around one another and I could see the shape of it. The cartoon animals I had been drawing since I was six walked into the frame and away I went following after them with my sketchpad.
From about 2011 until 2018 I'd work on this for a few months at a time until I'd hit a dead end. Then I'd get back to painting or scratch-boarding or collaging for a while until the next bit seemed to make sense and I'd draw some more of it. Sometimes I'd forget the entire story and have to reread it and take notes to follow what it was all about. Sometimes I'd throw out twenty pages and rewrite/redraw them. Then in 2019 Antenna Press selected me for some graphic novel writing contest and shit got real. This never ending project that I imagined was about two thirds done had to get finished somehow. At that point it was about a hundred and forty pages long. In the next two years I wrote/drew another hundred and forty for a total of like 280 pages.
As I went along, I found that full page drawings like the ones in this exhibit (they call them splash pages) can really open up a pivotal moment, expand the world of the story, underline concepts, or just step out of narrative and into some other strange dimension within the story, so I started adding more and more of them. Some of them are among my favorite things I've ever made as an artist, so I chose about ten to display here.
In addition to those drawings, this show includes four squarish drawings I made after I finished the book. They all incorporate images I'd come across while gathering reference photos for The Domesticated Afterlife. You'll see the ark or ship imagery running through the book and through these drawings as well. I also included some drawings I made last year that I titled Duplication Variations, because I used a copy machine, self-adhesive paper, and scissors to manipulate sketchbook drawings.
When The Domesticated Afterlife was finished and printed in about August of 2021, I sent it to some niche artsy comic stores and to a few incredible online retailers like Domino Books, and to my surprise some people really liked it. It got a few pretty nice reviews including some Best Graphic of 2021 lists and stuff. It's a weird, personal, idiosyncratic daydream/fable/myth. If you're interested in checking it out, you can read some chapters on the website, Solrad.co, which is run by Fieldmouse Press or you can buy the book. Peace.

Scott Finch lives and draws in Baton Rouge, LA. Other titles of his include A Little World Made Cunningly (2013, Regent Press), Form and Deed (2014, self-published), and Cheer, Charm, Life (2020, Antenna).

This exhibition is presented alongside the latest works from Jerimiah Ariaz, Christopher Scott Brumfield, & David DuBose. All works from these artists are on view, free of charge, during normal gallery hours (12 - 6 p.m., Tue - Sun) from March 1st - 31st.