The work of Kayla Jones and Lillian Byrd explores texture as it exists in nature and as it is impersonated in processes of mass production. Whether due to cheapened processes or limitations in technology, everything from masonry to Google Maps bears evidence of this attempt to aestheticize or convenience nature and its textures. Jones and Byrd explore these dumb, redundant, or alien products attempting to package an idealized version of nature. Their work mimics and highlights the peculiarity of these wholly unnatural endproducts, sampling the natural world and aestheticizing it to curious or ridiculous ends.

Kayla Jones grew up in Austin and is currently a student at the University of Texas at Austin pursuing a BFA in Studio Art and a BA in English. She is attracted to the mundane and explores our interaction with everyday objects or rituals through a variety of media.www.joneskayla.com

Lillian Byrd was born and raised in Houston, Texas. She received her BFA from the University of Texas in 2015. She primarily works in sculpture and oil painting. Her work explores self-perpetuating natural processes of dematerialization and entropy. Her process often involves experimentation with unusual materials and exposure to natural damaging elements. She is dedicated to preventing a piece of art from developing an object preciousness, or a disconnect with nature by depriving a material of its tendency toward natural decomposition. Byrd has exhibited work at The Visual Arts Center in Austin, Texas and The Lumberyard in an exhibition affiliated with Fieldwork in Marfa, Texas. She was a recipient of the University of Texas Fine Arts Professional Initiative Travel Grant in 2015. She is currently living and working in Austin, Texas. www.lillybyrd.com

This exhibition is a part of SUMMERSCOOL, an intensive program that prepares dedicated artists to propose, refine, and execute an exhibition concept in a professional and supportive environment. These selected artists have spent the last several months participating in our post-art-school curriculum which includes professional development in gallery preparation, art handling and installation, artist statements, bios, and talks, application preparation, grant writing, and community networking. These efforts now culminate in three exhibitions opening at our Canopy pop-up gallery.