The foundation of Michael Berryhill and Ryan Lauderdale’s artwork lies in process; each artist approaches their work to a large extent with an intuitive practice and basis in drawing.   Both artists rely on the ephemeral nature of memory and personal history, trusting interior and environmental influences equally throughout their process.  While Berryhill’s practice is primarily informed by snapshots of grotesque and playful art historical information he samples from and mixes with his own impulses, Lauderdale draws from memories that blend dovetailing impressions of growing up in rural Oklahoma within both church camps and popular musical culture.

The resulting images exhibit a diversity of expression unique to each artist,  illuminating our ability to inhabit the same time and place while drawing forth highly individualistic conclusions about our past and present.  Welcome to Berrydale.

Michael Berryhill was born in El Paso, Texas, and earned a B.F.A.in Painting from the University of Texas at Austin in 1994.  He has shown work in Berlin, Idyllwild, Portland, and throughout Texas, including New American Talent 21 at Austin’s Arthouse.  In 2007 he completed a residency at Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, and will finish his M.F.A. in Painting at Columbia University, New York, in 2009.  

Ryan Lauderdale was born in in Stillwater, Oklahoma, and earned a B.F.A. in Studio Art and B.A. in Art History from the University of Texas at Austin in 2005. His work has been exhibited throughout the U.S. and Texas, and his video works have screened with the Austin Museum of Digital Art, Cinematexas, and Current Space in Baltimore.