The Fourth Wall is pleased to present Bay Area artist Heather Wilcoxon's newest body of work titled Home Alone.  Wilcoxon's paintings have always been about social, political, environmental or personal issues. Its focus and style have shifted over the years — the Boat Series  (2013-16) reflected a time during which she was dealing with cancer and sought a calm equilibrium in nature. The Mask Series (2020-21) was inspired by the early part of the Covid-19 pandemic, particularly the isolation and loss that affected so many people.  In early 2022, Wilcoxon's Figure Series dealt with the overturning of Roe v Wade and with the immigration crisis. Paintings from that body of work were on display during the summer of 2023 at the DiRosa Center for Contemporary Art. Much earlier (2000-2012), her work had a darkly humorous quality, using cartoon figures and monsters to illustrate her anger and frustration toward our country’s political policies and financial crisis. 

"I started the current body of work, Home Alone, in 2017. The first painting was about flooding and my concerns on global warming. I live on a houseboat and reflected often on how the rise of ocean waters affects people like me, as well as the world population as a whole. It has been a five-year exploration. As I kept working, other issues like homelessness became part of this body of work. 

"Our society’s sense of isolation during all of these critical, historical times are evident in the work. The houses in the paintings often stand firm and strong reflecting a moment of glory and independence; other times they appear fragile and isolated, close to decay. I find that each painting tells its own story. My color choice is minimal yet my surfaces are rich with tonal hues of thick paint, sometimes creating an ominous mood. The Home Alone paintings are meant to give the viewer a quiet place to contemplate his/her own experience."         Heather Wilcoxon