NADA New York 2022

Nat Meade describes his recurring motifs as ‘pedestrian struggles made epic.’ Across his paintings and works on paper, solitary figures are swallowed by waves, obscured in shadow, and subsumed by nature. The figures become stand-ins for himself as he analyzes his feelings around becoming an adult, husband, teacher, and father. The impossibility of meeting expectations that come with these roles creates a tension that is carried through the constant struggle between who we want to be, how we want to be perceived, and who we actually are.