Growing up in Missouri, David Hevel was influenced by the inevitable and distinctly American force-feeding of pop icons and television culture. Hevel worked in film/video performance, commercial illustration and painting, eventually finding his niche in sculpture. Using unique materials, Hevel creates fantastical images of animals that represent such American celebrities as supermodel Tyra Banks and pop idol Justin Timberlake.

Spark chats with Hevel at Heather Marx Gallery as he dismantles his solo show, “Fierce,” and prepares for his next exhibit, “Diva Hound Smack-Down at the Grammys,” in Kansas City.

Hevel’s unique form of art began when he became inexplicably infatuated with stockpiling plastic fruit. Now, years later, he has found a way to channel his infatuation by developing a complex mixed-media operation that relies heavily on glitter, hot glue and his plethora of obsessively collected kitsch — including sparkling beads and butterflies, silk flowers, oversized rhinestones, and faux fur — to embellish Styrofoam forms used by taxidermists. His work teeters precariously between grotesque and gorgeous, providing a humorous narrative that addresses the nature of Americans’ excessive consumption of celebrity gossip.

David Hevel is based in Oakland, and his work has been exhibited internationally. He earned a B.F.A. from Central Missouri State University, an M.Ed. from the University of Missouri and an M.F.A. from California College of the Arts.

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