Tyson Grumm

Grumm’s paintings invite us into a parallel world where fantastical animals come alive and eccentricities are born. His images appear as if freeze-framed from a surreal film, so rich and full of narrative, we catch only a moment of a much larger story yet to be told. Grounded in a hint of the commonplace – a recognizable object, a conversant glance between two figures, a charming nostalgia – Grumm uses these familiarities as a point of connection and departure. A boat becomes a backpack, a chair is fit for a bighorn sheep, a ping-pong table hosts a match between an ostrich and a beaver, a rocket ship reveals a rhino. Created entirely in the mind of the artist, his figures often hold historical significance, appearing to be both characters and caricatures, distinctive and unusual. These colorful and unique works engage our imagination in endless possibilities, leaving behind breadcrumb clues to a path only traveled along by dreamers.

Tyson Grumm was born in Newcastle, Wyoming, in 1972. He studied at Southern Oregon University where he received his Bachelors in Fine Art in 1996.