Hawkins is obsessed with ghosts and with evoking the supernatural. Some of his works may be described as funky morality tales. For instance, one painting shows a bear trap in which a wad of dollar bills serves as bait. Another image shows a similar trap with a frosted cupcake used as bait. Certain works have vague political themes--one eerie painting shows a ghostly JFK peering from behind a curtain. Two of my favorite works seem to be ecological statements. One picture features an emaciated elephant with enormous tusks lying prostrate in a zoo cage. Another depicts a presumably sick tree, lying in a bed, sad and leafless, partly covered in a blanket. Hawkins has the ability to create images that are at once hilarious and profound.


DAVID EBONY is a contributing editor to Art in America. He is working on a book about the life and work of Graham Sutherland.

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