Ryan Runcie’s work is a tenuously balanced play of color that pulls viewers in from afar before asking them to see with new eyes - cultivating a shift in perspective. It is meant to be a comforting engagement that blurs social lines and gives us permission to make mistakes while engaging strenuous and, often temperamental, questions with a lighthearted initiation.

Ryan Runcie is a bi-racial, first-generation American artist whose inspirations come from his study of our philosophic beliefs and experiences that ultimately change how we value others and ourselves. He has studied art passionately for nearly two decades and graduated from Texas State University with his Bachelor of Fine Arts in 2016. He has many private works across the United States and public murals in Texas. He has created work for The City of San Marcos, Endeavor Real Estate, Capital Metro, DCS Corporation, local businesses, and local non-profit organizations.

He is a studied color theorist and prolific artist. The study has helped him to constantly push his evocative artwork that uses color in a way that inspires viewer to think more universally. His portraits are inviting and expressive — dissolving the stigmas that skin tones initially register in our minds.

Dave McClinton, Selected Artist for the Thirsty Planet EAST Artist Series 2020, has worked in the design industry for over 20 years. In addition to continually serving logo and branding clients, he is also an emerging artist who has exhibited highly personal work for the last few years.

About his culturally-based imagery, “In the African American community, we are slowly rediscovering our history that has not been fully illustrated. It’s my job as a visual communicator to review historical information and inform the community by bringing these concepts to life and help visually define our identity. And to distribute these stories about the strengths and trials of the African American community...Currently, there is a newly intensified wave of empathetic consciousness in all forms of artistic output. I want the community to seize this moment in history to create work that tells a story and compels them to seek out empathy and activism for the sake of others. My hope is the work I’m creating can help do that. I want to spark conversations that have, historically, been hard to start."