Acrylics
Ideas that arise during the creation of the novels, ideas that are relevant to the story or its development but don’t quite fit within the manuscript itself, are transformed into acrylic paintings by the artist. These paintings serve as storytelling devices meant to expand and enrich the original work.
The Dream (part 1)
Animal was inspired by a two-part dream. In the first part, the author watches a bull arrive at Heaven's gate. The bull was slaughtered as a calf and is upset that he never had the chance to experience life as a fully grown bull. He demands to return to Earth to take vengeance on humanity. The angels recommend letting it go in compassion and enjoying heaven.
The bull won't let it go, so he joins the other animals who are mourning similar injustices—cows who lost their calves, livestock killed by humans they once trusted, and so on. Together, they mourn, gnash their teeth, and demand justice.
The bull isn’t content to remain there and mourn for eternity, so he comes up with a plan. He asks God if he can return to Earth as a man and educate humanity on the proper treatment of animals. God considers the idea but sees the hatred in the bull’s heart toward mankind and understands the risks. He refuses the request and instead offers to let the bull watch over a family of cattle ranchers.
The bull ends up loving the family—deeply. Eventually, it comes time for the family to have a child. The bull returns to God and once again asks to be sent back to Earth as a man, hoping to teach humanity how to treat cattle with compassion—this time as a child born into the family he has grown to care for. God sees the hatred still buried deep in the bull’s heart but grants his request.
The bull grows up to be a strong young man and a devoted son. But, like most people, he doesn't remember anything before his birth or why he came. The hatred buried deep in his heart over mankind’s treatment of cattle begins to surface in unexpected ways.
"It's about time I treat you like the animal you are! Get!"
The family begins to notice these changes in their son and grows concerned. They do everything they can to nurture a more compassionate attitude toward animal husbandry. They introduce him to different species, take him to church, and lead by example. Still, he remains convinced that he knows the proper way to treat cows—and he does not waver in this belief.
The bull—now a young man—eventually joins the military and later attends college to study business. When his parents attend his graduation, he notices that his father is very ill. His mother quietly confides in him that things aren’t going well on the ranch and that they could really use his help back home. His father is too weak to care for the cattle.
By the time the son returns home, his father has passed away. The land their family farm sits on has been ravaged by drought and famine. He learns that his father had stopped buying his own medication just to afford necessities for the herd prior to his death. Overcome with grief and rage, the son becomes determined to run the farm a new way—one where profit is king and compassion is discouraged.
He refines his model until the price of beef per pound is less than that of sand—while more than half of it is pure profit. Ultimately, he becomes wildly successful, transforming the family ranch into a multinational beef and dairy empire. His model soon becomes the new gold standard for the treatment of commodity animals.
His pride vanishes in an instant the moment he dies and fully realizes what he has done. Instead of teaching humanity to treat animals with compassion, he became the very kind of bull-slaughtering man he once despised—only far worse. His hatred for mankind shatters, replaced at last by compassion. He begs God never to send him back to Earth, but instead to help him undo the damage he has caused.
God grants the bull peace and sends the bull into the garden to wait for the day of redemption. There, the Spirit whispers in his ear all the wonderful ways it will unfold. In the end, all that remains for the bull is faith, hope, and love.
Part two of the dream is the book, Animal. More details here: Animal
Juxtapositions
"Cow sense" This set of two paintings displays a unified scene inspired by both contemporary and historic practices of animal husbandry. It draws inspiration from the everyday rhythms of animal sanctuaries, hobby farms, free-range and traditional farms with a special nod to Azorean traditions and Texas cattle drives. The two halves work together as one unified piece or separate.
"No cents" This set of images presents a fragmented scene. On the left is a painting inspired by real events that transpired during the creation of Animal: 18,000 cows die in Texas Dairy Fire. On the right is the death of a cowboy inspired loosely by the "End of the Trail" sculpture by James Fraser. His death is attributed to financial burdens, policies that benefit the well lobbied minority, and
"Common sense" The left panel highlights exciting innovations in the field of food production, while the right pays tribute to the developmental benefits of growing up around cattle, as described by Nicolette Hahn Niman in her book, Defending Beef.
"Nonsense" On the left is man with a history of mental health issues and a criminal record. The only job he can get is at a slaughterhouse. He's trying to keep from snapping again but it feels impossible. He doesn't eat meat from his packing plant. Inspired by Slaughterhouse and articles like this. On the right is a depiction of child labor. Which came up over and over and is highly disturbing
"Get the bad guy"
"Breaking bread"
Snapshots in time
While searching for music to accompany her work, the artist googled 'music that dairy cows like' and came across an article that led her to R.E.M.’s Everybody Hurts. She listened to it while working on a milking scene in which the animal had just been separated from her baby. It became one of the most profoundly sorrowful moments in the creation of the book.
[By 2025, First We Feast had become best known for their hot wings interview segments. But back in the day, they also published articles on food and culture. This particular article is no longer available—what you see here is a screenshot. Some elements have been altered in the artist's artwork; for example, the artist's phone is almost never fully charged.]
Deep End
What if we are like biodegradable cups floating together in the ocean, and once the cups biodegrade, we are just ocean?
More acrylics coming soon. The remainder will be uploaded by 12.2025