Armadillo Art Exhibition: Paintings by Carl Clark and Mike Harris Jr.

Author: Interact Center for the Visual and Performing Arts
Published: 2024/05/08 - Updated: 2025/12/21
Publication Type: Announcement
Category Topic: Art - Artists - Related Publications

Page Content: Synopsis - Introduction - Main - Insights, Updates

Synopsis: This announcement features landscape paintings by two accomplished artists with the Interact Center for the Visual and Performing Arts. Carl Clark and Mike Harris Jr. have each maintained dedicated artistic practices for over a decade, with their work displayed in regional galleries and institutions throughout the Twin Cities. Clark's work is recognized for its stark, expansive skies rendered in bold patches of color, while Harris focuses on pollinators and the interconnectedness of agricultural and urban ecosystems. Both artists are affiliated with Interact, a progressive visual arts organization that provides studio space and support for artists with disabilities, making their exhibition particularly relevant to those interested in disability arts communities and the broader accessibility of cultural institutions. The exhibition ran from May 11 through June 15, 2024, at Interact Gallery in St. Paul, Minnesota - Disabled World (DW).

Introduction

Clark and Harris share an interest in rolling hills, expansive skies, and vigorous swaths of color. Both use painting to commune with the environment. They treat their subjects gently; bees rest in psychedelic swirls of pink, orange, and yellow; little palm trees line the edges of dark and peaceful lagoons. One imagines wandering these places, cloaked in tangerine and cerulean hues, seeing things as the artists do.

Main Content

Carl Clark has presented work in galleries throughout the Twin Cities, including The White Page, Artspace Jackson Flats, Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, HGA Architects & Engineers, and Interact Gallery. His work is collected both nationally and abroad. In 2021, he presented work in Cordially Invited at MAKE Studio (Baltimore) and in WILD GOOSE, a two-person online exhibition with New York-based artist Jack Arthur Wood Jr. He has practiced at Interact since 2016.

Clark's beautifully stark landscapes are known for boundless, wide-open skies. He applies pigment in columns and rows, creating flat patchworks of color. Both wistful and matter of fact, the paintings whisk us away to shorelines, mountains, pastures, seas. "I like the scenery," he says. Working with his advocate, Joli Grostephan, Clark sources reference images from calendars and the internet, infusing his subjects with mystery and charm.

Carl Clark's painting from 2023, titled Farm, is a brightly saturated landscape painting of a farm with a thatched roof with an abstract mountain in the background.

Mike Harris Jr. has presented work in exhibitions at The White Page, Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, Minneapolis Institute of Art, and Interact Gallery. In 2018, he received an Emerging Artist grant from VSA Minnesota, and in 2022, he presented a solo display at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. Harris collaborated with New York-based accessories label KARA in 2020 to develop imagery for the release of their Spring 2021 capsule collection. He has practiced at Interact since 2010.

Harris's work is deeply concerned with pollinators. In his acrylic and watercolor paintings, yellows, oranges, and greens compose vibrating skies; worker bees pollinate in effervescent swirls of color; and rolling hills are laced with luminous rows of corn. He hopes that his paintings encourage viewers to contemplate the interconnectedness of bees and humans, as well as rural and urban environments. "We have to work together to get what we need," he says.

Mike Harris Jr.'s painting from 2015, titled Spelling Bee, is a painting of a bumblebee close up. It is on a bright yellow surface. The bee is surrounded by green, purple, and orange brushstrokes.

Both artists have been devoted to their current subjects for years (Clark 8, Harris 14) and have singular archives to prove it. Their steadfast routines and prolific bodies of work signal a commitment to something greater that may be, like the show's title, ineffable. Armadillo puts words to the sublime. When asked why he's an artist, Harris says, "Maybe because I fit into the artist community." Clark says, "It's somethin' to do."

On the left side is a photo of Carl Clark leaning over some of his paintings as he signs them. Dozens of his paintings are sprawled out on the table. Clark identifies as a Black man. He wears a grey, brown, and black jacket and a grey striped beanie. To the right is a photo of Mike Harris Jr. at Interact Gallery. Dozens of his paintings are on the table in front of him. He sits in a chair, looking at them, smiling. Harris identifies as a white man. He wears a turquoise zip up, green bandana, and safety glasses. — (left) A photo of Carl Clark leaning over some of his paintings as he signs them. Dozens of his paintings are sprawled out on the table. Clark identifies as a Black man. He wears a grey, brown, and black jacket and a grey striped beanie. (Right) A photo of Mike Harris Jr. at Interact Gallery. Dozens of his paintings are on the table in front of him. He sits in a chair, looking at them, smiling. Harris identifies as a white man. He wears a turquoise zip up, green bandana, and safety glasses.

Mark your calendars and save the date - this show is not to be missed. We look forward to celebrating with you!

Opening Reception

Saturday, May 11, 4 to 6 p.m.
Interact Gallery
755 Prior Ave N, Suite 002D, St. Paul, MN 55104
(651) 756-1246

Open by appointment May 11 - June 15, 2024

Insights, Analysis, and Developments

Editorial Note: The Armadillo exhibition illustrates how sustained creative practice - Clark's eight years and Harris's fourteen years of focused work - generates singular artistic voices and substantial bodies of work worthy of gallery attention. What's particularly noteworthy is how the artists themselves speak about their work with directness rather than grand rhetoric: Clark simply notes it's "somethin' to do," while Harris credits finding community among other artists. This straightforward approach, paired with their serious engagement with landscape, color, and ecological themes, suggests that meaningful art-making transcends the narratives often imposed on disabled artists' work, reminding viewers that artistic merit and personal motivation operate on their own terms - Disabled World (DW).

Attribution/Source(s): This quality-reviewed publication was selected for publishing by the editors of Disabled World (DW) due to its relevance to the disability community. Originally authored by Interact Center for the Visual and Performing Arts and published on 2024/05/08, this content may have been edited for style, clarity, or brevity.