I build abstract paintings, objects, and installations from reclaimed wood, worn fabric, wax, pigment, ash, earth, tar, cardboard, and other ordinary, weathered materials that carry evidence of a prior life. I cut, join, nail, burn, and stitch them, leaving much of their history visible.

I work mostly in monochromatic, neutral palettes—white, gray, brown, and black. When color is held back, much of the emotional work has to happen elsewhere. Subtle differences begin to matter more: texture, edge, imperfection, the meeting of unlike materials. I rely on these quieter elements to carry tension, intimacy, vulnerability, and connection.

My work comes from thinking about friendship and about closeness between two people as something built rather than simply felt. I construct objects because relationships are also made: piece by piece, through choice, asymmetry, trust, hurt, adjustment, and repair. I want the work to hold tenderness, damage, and endurance at the same time. The repairs do not hide what happened. They become part of the structure.

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Jerry McLaughlin is a full-time artist based in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. Previously a pediatric critical care physician, he is also an internationally recognized expert in cold wax medium and co-author of Cold Wax Medium: Techniques, Concepts & Conversations. His paintings, objects, and installations are held in private and institutional collections in the U.S. and abroad.