Mike Cockrill

Cockrill is an 80s graphic novelist turned controversial painter. His paintings have a vintage feel. They seem so pleasant at first glance, however, but his themes can make the viewer uneasy. 

His paintings depict youth and innocence while foreshadowing future deviance and even sexualizing the little girls. 

From MikeCockrill.com:

"...Absurd and tongue-in-cheek on the surface, the works are underneath, dark and psychologically loaded with scenes of humiliation and trauma.”Borrowing from the magazines and Little Golden Books of his early childhood, he began weaving together coming-of-age narratives that included overtones of his own Catholic upbringing in suburban Northern Virginia"

Cockrill’s paintings closely detail the rich transition from the world of childhood fantasy to adult awareness in a manner that is both playfully innocent and sexually charged. Characterized by an interest in nostalgic figuration, Cockrill’s paintings balance the sacred and profane as well as issues of sex, politics and the suburban family.

I find it interesting that these works of art are the product of a Northern Virginian artist. As a Centreville native, it makes me wonder-- what do these paintings say about the society and culture of the region?