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This page
is a collection of older works that no longer seem relevant to my current
art career.
Many of them are gone--either in private collections or burned in the
house fire of 1999.
All works copyright Tad Spencer. No reproduction allowed without permission.
AUTUMN
Pencil on illustration board, 16" x 20", 1993
This is my first piece from my senior year in high school--the year I
really came into my own, developing a unique style.
SAINT
TRUNCATION
Sculpture, 12" x 8" x 18"
Burned in fire
The development of this piece started out innocently enough, when my roommate at the time asked if I needed an iron for something other than ironing. I chimed in, "yes," without knowing what I would do with it. Here is what she became.
Acrylic on canvas board, 16" x 20", 1996
Although this is a popular favorite, it is not one of my highest technical
achievements. I started by experimenting with some dimension distortion,
a la Picasso, and it evolved from there. It was really not meant to be
a high-impact piece...more of an experiment.
ST.
JAMES PARK AT NIGHT
Acrylic on illustration board, 10" x 16", 1996
Burned in fire
This was inspired by the garden lights in St. James Park, London. At night, the lights shine up on the trees, creating an amazing atmosphere. This was my first (and possibly last) attempt at impressionism.
THE FOOL
Acrylic on canvas, 12" x 18", 1996
Burned in fire
This was a rather sardonic look at the irony of personality. The fool--seemingly the funniest man in the kingdom--suffers from the deepest depression.
Acrylic and colored pencil on illustration board, 20" x 36", 1997
Burned in fire
NO, this is not about abortion! It's sad to see that our minds are trained to think abortion whenever there is an image of a fetus. Some people ignore the beer bottle completely and just look at the fetus and think I am a right wing propagandaist. Hardly. This was created in outrage to mothers CREATING a syndrome for their children called F.A.S.--Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. The piece was also created soon after Nirvana's In Utero album was released. Naturally, that got my creative juices flowing. (Note: I originally did the piece in 1993, but I reworked it a bit in 1997.)
SELF-CONTROL
AND FREEDOM
Acrylic on illustration board, 16" x 20", 1995
Burned in fire
This piece was an exploration of the critical moment when one decides whether or not to take his/her own life. It was a necessary piece at the time--a bit of self-expression and nothing more.
Acrylic on illustration board, 16" x 20", 1997
Burned in fire
As you might imagine, I have gotten mixed reviews on this piece. One woman took offense to it, saying, "why are you so angry at women?" I was taken aback, because that was truly never in my head as this piece evolved. This is part of a three-part series I developed entitled, War. These are my reflections on the war in Bosnia (the first publicized onslaught in '93). Hence the grenade breasts and the machine gun pointed at the baby. The other two in the trilogy are not on the website at this time, but I hope to have them up soon.
PEACE
Pencil, ballpoint pen, and watercolor on illustration board, 1992
Burned in fire
This is my oldest piece--created as my first real artistic exploration in high school. Nothing incredibly profound.