David Larson Art Reviews & Media
David got a fair amount of press, and they always ran those irresistible pictures. I always wish they had seen the gentler side he showed in gifts to friends and celebrations. Still, these articles, gathered, would seem a hoot and a holler to DEL.
Jarring, disturbing and sometimes downright ghoulish, the drawings of Raleigh artist David Early Early Larson have earned a small but dedicated local audience.
The works include images of Victorian-era beauties with Gibson Girl coifs, madonnas in filmy gowns or vampirish women staring at the viewer with an unsettling hollow-cheeked gaze.
At any one time. The Paper Plant has between 25 and 30 Larson drawings on display – enough to constitute a small, continuing exhibition of the artist’s work
Larson said over lunch that he wants to suggest extreme psychological states in his drawings. He’s also interested in what he called “the paradox of normalcy.”
Artistically, Larson said he has been inspired mostly by northern European artists…yet despite all the influences, Larson’s work has a clearly personal look.
unsettling hollow- cheeked gaze
Max Halperen, NCSU English professor covered the Nightingale Gallery show for this RTP tabloid weekly by favoring David Larson’s work over “the pleasant but empty wallpaper that fills many of our local shows.”
Larson’s world (this painterly world, that is, for Larson himself is quiet and soft-spoken in public) is as unsentimental as they come. Nor is it an angry world, for the violence and viciousness are simply presented as facts of life…The fact of the matter is there is nothing quite like it on view elsewhere in the Triangle.
Steven Litt was less impressed with the Nightingale show: “He’s still working with the same angry pets, the same ghoulish men and women with bloodshot eyes and vampire teeth…”
As always, Larson’s control of his materials is excellent. He rubs, scratches, scapes and smudges rich textures into his pastel and charcoal drawings. The problem is that these skills are in service of a vision that needs to grow.
Andrea Selch did a big feature in the NC Independent and Wendy Walsh took the lovely photo in the back of the house on North Street (the one that burned).
I became interested in Larson when I saw some of his work on display at The Paper Plant in Raleigh. His pastel drawings of people drew me to them. It was something in the figures’ eyes – their shadows and hollowness were intensely realistic and emotional.
If I had to think of a name for his style, I would call it New Wave – not simply because the figures almost looked like they had spiked hair and were listening to punk rock, but also because after I spoke with Larson and learned his philosophies, I felt his work was a new wave in portraiture. It is a technique of social realism flavored, not by a political message, but rather by a human revelation.
He paints what he sees in people, anything from confusion to direction to sexuality to intellectualism.He says he wants to portray the soul. “A landscape has no soul,” he told me. I believe in eyes. They are windows.Through them you can see people’s intent.”
” I hate the way people are commodified by today’s hardcore consumerism, and I hate the way salability probably affects my work – it ruins the purity of the idea the same way even this interview does.”
Danny Gallant, graphic designer for Scream magazine, says of the above: I curated the show as I was supporting many of the great artists I had gathered for the soon to be stillborn new Scream Magazine. David Larson‘s Dupp was the feature and a huge hit, but there was a ton of great art. Other notable folks are John Vannucchi, Caroline Branch, Jeff Rooney, Lillian Jones, Greg Carter, Katie Boone.
Max Halperen reviewed the major retrospective of Davids work held at The Paper Plant. The poster below shows a list of friends, fans and organizations that loaned their beloved Larsons for the show,which contained 108 pieces.. There were also works for sale, including several large oils – the one poorly imaged in the article is at the top of the oils post.
In the article above, Max acknowledges “some grumbling about his failure to move beyond the world of Count Dracula” but notes the strong defense from David’s admirers and sees him “edging toward a wider range.” Agreement to Abuse,” the painting shown in the article, is described as having ” a painterly environment which makes a broad and powerful statement.”
David Larson’s Signs and Panels
Bill Hickman, a wonderful chef of Rathskellar fame, had David make this. The other signs were made for the Habitat for Humanity Re-Store, where David worked for some years and where he gathered materials for his “Outsider Art.”
from Susan C
from Viki B
from Dierdre S
from Alan B
from Karen R
from Sasser Street
from Susan C
from Alan B
from Alan B
from Mary R
from Peter L
from Peter L
from Randy A
from Clyde S
These last signs are a few David made for the Veggie Bar, which Art Deco operated off of Tryon Road.
from Mary McV
from Art D
Larson: Small Press and Zine Illustration
from an early Paper Plant publication
David illustrated several of The Paper Plant’s chapbooks, as well as for Peloria Press (Jim Shell and David Kelly) and the recently published book The Orphan by Dave Wilson. He was a major artist for Scream, the most important creative magazine of its day in Raleigh. His covers inaugurated zines by both Margaret and Lee Johnson. His band poster work led into fertile ground as the “Mr Creative” of the Rollywood Funny Papers. His pastels graced the covers of the seed catalogs published by the late Russell Boone, publisher of Scream. Any publisher or writer was thrilled to be blessed by his work.
original sketch
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Scream Magazine, published by Russell Boone, issued 7 volumes.
Scream # 2
Scream #2 back
Below is an illustrated story in Scream by David Weaver. He was a close friend and part of the amazing Larson cadre from ECU, so the story itself is also imaged.
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from Randy A – Boone’s Seeds original
from Kim B (original)
Larson’s work for Russell Boone’s Seed company is archived at Alternating Crimes.
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from John DJ – S. Lifestyle original
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self-published chapbook by ECU friend Roger Lell
Cannibal love
Cannibal picnic
Macho Cannibal
Suicidal Cannibal
Missionary Cannibal
Catholic Cannibal
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David illustrated and lettered a flyer for the Artspace show Hats, Masks & Headgear. The exhibition involved several friends of David who had formed a weekly writing workshop.
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In 2018 Susan Crane and Neal Hutcheson published posthumously The Orphan by Dave Wilson, a Raleigh musician and writer who is as beloved and missed as David. The novel was originally published in blog form, early in that format’s history. David had done the illustrations long before the final publication.
Orphan interior illustration
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David Larson Celebrations and Statements
Enjoy these, from Christmas cards to one of the most powerful statements I ever saw from an individual artist that I knew.
from David Norris – sepia ink on printed card
from John and Cara DJ
from Debbie B (original)
from David N
lino on rice paper from Alan B
from Karen W
from Cheryl P “Pin the Hippie”
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from The Paper Plant
from Sasser Street
When NC resumed executions with James Hutchinson in 1984, David posted these around town. Weaver remembers helping with Hillsborough Street, while Kurt F recalls driving David to the Governor’s Mansion, where “they got run off.”
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Larson: Drawings, Prints & Other
from Pat M
from Lucy I
from Debbie B
from Kim B
from Richard B
from Debbie B
from Alison T
from Danny G
from Ian B
from Cheryl P
from Johnny B “Ghost of Uncle Sam”
from David N
from Michele L S
from Sasser St. – migraine illustration
from Lori R McC
from Lori R McC
from Randy A
from Ginny W P
from Ginny W P
from Matt Neel
from Sasser Street
from Sasser Street
from Bill H and Pat M (magnet)
from Alan B
from Alan B
from Susan C
from Matt N
from Kim B – bookmark
from Matt N
from Matt N
Sasser St bookmark doodles
from Alan B: As all his friends know, David loved to doodle, on any piece of scrap card stock or paper. These are very small images he xeroxed a bunch together before sticking a few into books as markers at Cameron Village Library for a lucky person to find later.
Another interesting way David “published” his work was stickers, made from mostly bio portraits or Muerto Dia images and distributed to friends and on signs around town. Click below to see a selection.
Stickers & the DEL Commie File
Yet another unique artistic expression- a pianted rock from Marty W.
Painted partly polished granite – 12″ x 8″ x 6″ `50 lbs Signed/dated “LARSON 73”
from Kim B – bookmark
Dudobrats from Alan B
The four images below are prints from ECU days – early Dud styling!
from Dennis C
stone lithograph from Allen L
printmaking plate from ECU days
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collaboration with Marek Bireline
Alan B FB post with Larson/Bireline collabs
David N and David L draw each other
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doodles from the Cutler Street Grocery phase
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Below are 4 of the original pieces that came from Karl’s house on Cox Avenue to be shown at the original tiny location of the Paper Plant Bookstore on Salisbury Street in downtown Raleigh.
from Doug J
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from John DJ
This lovely gal, a paper cut-out, came out of the closet in the Park Ave. apartment (by the I-Hop) during the final party before destruction of that house. Everyone graffiti=ed all the walls – David had already lettered this out in the hall “I have always depended on the kindness of strangers.”
raleighrambles.com
portrait by Guillermo Velasco
Raleigh Rambles 
