Richard Nam. Terrible Lizards.

About

Nam's Terrible Lizards present a variety of ancient, monstrous creatures that used to roam the earth two-hundred-thirty million years ago. Through scenic and portraiture gestures, Nam explores these ruling reptiles across both tranquil and apocalyptic landscape, some in motion and others anthropomorphized. Although there are skeletal remnants of dinosaurs around the world, an exact image and how dinosaurs looked and behaved is still a mystery. Inspired by his obsession with paleontology and the history of the earth, Nam creates scenes of how he envisions the time when lizards were in charge.

Terrible Lizards also presents a collection of unique dinosaur sculptures that act as vessels for plant life. While whimsical and playful, these sculptures, referred to as "Dino-Pots," carry a message about the powerful forces of nature that have shaped our world. Dinosaurs, which once roamed the earth as mighty and dominant creatures, ultimately fell victim to an unstoppable force that led to their extinction. Nam honors these magnificent creatures while reminding us all of the fragile state of life.

In his practice, Nam draws inspiration from the works of Bill Waterman, Verne Dawson, Wayne Thiebaud, and Zdeněk Burian. Terrible Lizards aims to spark humanity's innate curiosity of investigating how our world functions, specifically at the point in time where ancient, monstrous creatures roamed the earth.

Richard Nam was born in 1997 in Los Angeles, California, and currently lives and works in Los Angeles. He is trained extensively in drawing, painting, printmaking, ceramics, sculpting, photography, and filmmaking. He received a BFA from UCLA in 2019 and an MFA from California Institute of the Arts in 2021.