DANTE DOUGLAS' Savior, Servant, Saint

My work centers on a personal fixation with creating narratives for characters, using both animal and human figures to explore uncomfortable concepts and conditions. Rather than serving as vessels for emotional weight, these characters become confidants. I often abstract the animal body, taking or adding an aspect to the form, allowing composition and presence to subtly suggest narrative. This impulse stems from my childhood growing up with massive St. Bernard dogs, whose imposing physical form contradicted their emotional serenity. They, as well as several other animals, inspired me in my youth to play pretend, imagining storylines and relationships for them. Though, in reality, they were just dogs.