Money Don't Grow on Tress
Raymond Butler
Mixed Media
8 x 8 x 7.25 in
2019
This piece is part of a triptych inspired by my family’s life in South Dallas and Saturday morning cartoons during the early ’90s. My grandfather had an old black and white television that he kept in the kitchen, and the boxy shape and grey screen in this work are a direct nod to that era. The words on the title screen reference phrases my mother used to say when money was tight like “Money Don’t Grow on Trees.” The credits style text that appears to list a production crew is actually me having fun with language, using names that sound real but are playful ways of expressing that we were always in need of money. The faces reference the cartoons we watched as kids shows from the ’90s that were bright, chaotic, and full of exaggerated expressions. While they seemed silly on the surface, many carried deeper themes hidden beneath the loud colors and playful soundtracks. That balance of humor and hidden meaning is something that’s always stuck with me and continues to influence how I create.
Raymond Butler
Mixed Media
8 x 8 x 7.25 in
2019
This piece is part of a triptych inspired by my family’s life in South Dallas and Saturday morning cartoons during the early ’90s. My grandfather had an old black and white television that he kept in the kitchen, and the boxy shape and grey screen in this work are a direct nod to that era. The words on the title screen reference phrases my mother used to say when money was tight like “Money Don’t Grow on Trees.” The credits style text that appears to list a production crew is actually me having fun with language, using names that sound real but are playful ways of expressing that we were always in need of money. The faces reference the cartoons we watched as kids shows from the ’90s that were bright, chaotic, and full of exaggerated expressions. While they seemed silly on the surface, many carried deeper themes hidden beneath the loud colors and playful soundtracks. That balance of humor and hidden meaning is something that’s always stuck with me and continues to influence how I create.
Raymond Butler
Mixed Media
8 x 8 x 7.25 in
2019
This piece is part of a triptych inspired by my family’s life in South Dallas and Saturday morning cartoons during the early ’90s. My grandfather had an old black and white television that he kept in the kitchen, and the boxy shape and grey screen in this work are a direct nod to that era. The words on the title screen reference phrases my mother used to say when money was tight like “Money Don’t Grow on Trees.” The credits style text that appears to list a production crew is actually me having fun with language, using names that sound real but are playful ways of expressing that we were always in need of money. The faces reference the cartoons we watched as kids shows from the ’90s that were bright, chaotic, and full of exaggerated expressions. While they seemed silly on the surface, many carried deeper themes hidden beneath the loud colors and playful soundtracks. That balance of humor and hidden meaning is something that’s always stuck with me and continues to influence how I create.