About the Shrines
I began making shrines in 2005 when my husband was deployed to Iraq. I spied an antique hutch in front of a store named "Sweet Home". I HAD to have it! I do not to this day know why, but I purchased the hutch, brought it home and immediately began affixing shiny things to it. I've been building shrines since. Building the shrines provides me with hours of meditation and prayer time; and, I hope, brings the same to those who house the shrines in their homes. These are working shrines - meant to be added to by the owner and used when intentions need to be lifted up.
Since the initial shrines for family members, I have taken on several commissions. I work with each client to personalize both the theme and the items used to construct the shrine. Often, I include items that have been provided to me by the client. Examples of these shrines include Ocean Springs, Six Saints and many of the pocket shrines. The larger and more contemporary works (An Imperfect Offering, When Pigs Fly, It’s a Crapshoot, etc) spring from my imagination and musings.
About Me
I grew up in the Delta - Forrest City, AR. My father was a farmer and my mother a school teacher and musician. This provided a home full of music surrounded by acres of inspiration. I studied art at SCA (now UCA), ASU, UALR and finally - to my parent's delight - graduated with a B.A. in Studio Art from the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville. In my art career, I've worked in pastels, charcoal, oils, and clay. I exhibited and sold clay works at Heights Gallery in the late 90's and had one piece receive Honorable Mention in the Delta Exhibition at the Arkansas Arts Center.
I have long been intrigued with color and detail. Early on, in experimenting with color in my two dimensional work, I was most interested in letting the color speak without line defining the object – an abstract, organic approach. Later, in my clay sculptures, I found myself acutely sensitive to detail and avoiding allowing color to define the subject.
Throughout life, religion - and the study of religions - has occupied much time and thought. I was raised in a Southern Baptist home; discovered Native American, Buddhist, and Hindu traditions and symbolism in my college years; then married a devout Catholic and was introduced to yet more traditions and symbols. All of these faith traditions find their way into my current art form of shrine building. In working with recycled and repurposed materials, I find my interest in color, line, detail, religious tradition and symbols all come together – to complete the whole. I do not see these shrines as religious items, rather I see them as invitations for contemplation and thus places of reflection for the viewer.
In my youth and all through college, I created art under the signature L. Hammons; as a married adult, I used L. Watts for my drawings and clay sculptures. While thinking about how to talk about and share my shrines, I settled on the name Hammons Watts. These shrines draw from a lifetime of observations, meditations, and contemplations - all presented with a little dose of whimsy.
Please contact me if you would like more information, to commission a shrine or inquire about pricing. HammonsWatts is based in Hermann, MO.
CV
EXHIBITIONS
2024 Memento Mori, Art Saint Louis Gallery, Saint Louis, MO
“It’s a Crap Shoot”, mixed media sculpture
2024 Juror - Missouri Fiber Artists Annual Exhibition, The Gallery at the Library,
Hermann, MO
2023 Winter Eden, The Gallery at the Library, Hermann, MO
“Lethe”, mixed media wall-hanging
2023 Art St. Louis, Art St. Louis Gallery, St. Louis, MO
“An Imperfect Offering”, mixed media sculpture
2022 Sense of Place, The Gallery at the Library, Hermann, MO
“When Pigs Fly”, mixed media sculpture
“An Imperfect Offering”, mixed media sculpture
“Ruth”, mixed media sculpture
1996 39th Delta Art Exhibition, Arkansas Museum of Fine Art, Little Rock, AR
“Detritus”, stoneware sculpture with iron/cobalt stain
AWARDS
2023 Juried Artist Registry, Arkansas Committee:National Museum of Women in the Arts
Biennial juried artist registry featuring work by Arkansas artists who identify as women; 2023-2025
1996 39th Delta Art Exhibition, Arkansas Museum of Fine Art, Little Rock, AR
Honorable Mention: “Detritus”, stoneware with iron/cobalt stain
GALLERY REPRESENTATION
2017 Butler Center Galleries, Little Rock, AR
discontinued contract upon move to Missouri
1997 The Heights Gallery, Little Rock, AR
COLLECTIONS
Dean and Mary Kumpuris, Little Rock, AR
Patti Stanley and Polly Lockett Fox, Little Rock, AR
Cathryn Slater, Little Rock, AR
Louis and Anna Watts, Winston-Salem, NC
Mike and Samantha Marquard, St. Louis, MO
Bartow Molloy, Hermann, MO
EDUCATION
1979 BA Studio Art, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville