Aaron Fowler: Bigger Than Me at the New Museum

Artist Aaron Fowler (b. 1988, St. Louis, MO) creates elaborate assemblage paintings from discarded found objects and unconventional materials sourced from his local surroundings. Through intuitive layering of castoff furniture, oil and acrylic paint, and collaged elements including iridescent CDs, water bottles, LED lights, sneakers, and plastic bags, Fowler meticulously constructs hybrid tableaux infused with a sense of raw urgency. Taking compositional cues from American history painting and religious iconography, Fowler inserts both imagined and concrete narratives from his personal experience. Each work illustrates a poignant subject or event that holds significance for the artist, from portraits of incarcerated family members and friends lost in acts of violence to fantastical scenarios incorporating historical figures, role models, and public icons.

Fowler will present a new installation of his work in the window of the New Museum’s 231 Bowerybuilding. This project is part of a new series of window installations, which relaunches the program the New Museum originally mounted in the 1980s.