James Castle: The Experience of Every Day

James Castle was born profoundly deaf in a sparsely-populated farmstead northeast of Boise, Idaho in 1899. He never learned to proficiently read, write, speak, sign, or lip-read. He communicated using ‘homespeak’ – a combination of gestures, improvised signs and vocal utterances. He learned to verbalize his observations of the world through works of art that he produced with highly inventive methods and scavenged materials such as cardboard, paper, string, ribbon, advertising clippings, food labels, printed texts, and other mediums.

“Untitled (Porch with open screen door),”
Soot and Soot Wash on Tan Found Cardboard, Double-sided Drawing
(Side A), 4.5″ x 5.75″.
Private collection, Minneapolis.

“Untitled (Homes / House),”
Soot, Soot Wash, Black Wax Crayon, and Red Wash on Tan Found Cardboard
(Unknown Source), 12″ x 18″. Private collection, Minneapolis.

“Untitled (Gray bird),” Torn and Cut Paper and Cardboard;
Sewn and Tied with White Cotton String;
Soot, Soot Wash, Gray Wash, and Traces of Red Pigment, 7.9″ x 11″ x 1″.
Private collection, Minneapolis.

James Castle: The Experience of Every Day (May 21st – August 21st 2016) at The Minneapolis Institute of Art.

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