David Weed
In 2017, I walked into a hardware store looking for a structure that could house an idea I had for an interactive sign. While exploring the electrical section, I discovered junction boxes - sturdy metal enclosures designed to protect wire connections. They were perfect: industrial, durable, and ideal for modification. Their metal construction allowed for drill pressing, cutting, and powder coating, offering both creative control and longevity.
I purchased one and later paired it with a 12-volt LED light, a toggle switch, an antenna, and a custom panel label. The concept was simple yet compelling - an interactive device that invited participation and choice. By flipping a switch, viewers could turn a light on or off, thereby registering a preference in a tangible way.
When I first displayed the piece during an art walk at my studio, I was struck by how people engaged with it. They debated, laughed, hesitated, and reflected - all in response to a single switch. That experience clarified my artistic direction. Soon after, I began adding push buttons and control knobs to offer a wider range of choices.
Since then, I've continued creating these devices - some politically charged, others playful, abstract, or enigmatic. Each piece transforms a small, intentional action into a moment of engagement, prompting curiosity, decision-making, dialogue, self-reflection, and expression. By placing choice at the center of my work, I explore the dynamic nature of meaning and invite viewers to take part in shaping it. Most recently, I've expanded into using guitar pedal enclosures to create smaller, more personal units.
David Weed
Seattle, WA (current)
Flagstaff, AZ
San Diego, CA
Tucson, AZ (grew up)
Chicago, IL (born)
Education
2008 MFA in Painting
Central Washington University, Ellensburg, WA
2001 BS in Art Education
Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ
1995 MA in Sociology
Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ
1991 BA in Sociology
University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ
Select Juried Exhibitions
2024 San Diego Museum of Art Artist Guild
Spring Exhibition, San Diego, CA
Accepted: Ice Cream Making Machine
2023 Purdue University
Information and Democracy: Education, Access, Libraries, and Society, West Lafayette, IN
Accepted: Arbitrary Connection, Functional Result, Structural Indifference, Innocent System
2023 Valdosta State University
Change of Weather, Valdosta, GA
Accepted: Global Warming
2020 Hera Gallery
Right to Vote, Wakefield, RI
Accepted: Vote
2020 Drury University
Fear, Pool Art Center Gallery, Springfield, MO
Accepted: Alarm, Vote, ICBM
2020 Shock Boxx Gallery
Intergalactic, Hermosa Beach, CA
Accepted: America Postwar 1950s, Ideology
2020 Monmouth University
Access, Opportunity, Diversity, Inclusion, Pollock Gallery, West Long Branch, NJ
Accepted: Gender, Immigration, Religion
2019 Albright College
Social Justice in the Misinformation Age, Freedman Gallery, Reading, PA
Accepted: Lethal Injection
2019 Florida State University
Combined Talents, Museum of Fine Art, Tallahassee, FL
Accepted: Sunshine, Immigration
2019 Brownsville Museum of Fine Art
47th International Exhibition, Brownsville, TX
Accepted: Sunshine, Cotton Candy, Religion
2018 East Tennessee State University
Fletcher Exhibit, Reece Museum, Johnson City, TN
Accepted: Global Warming
2018 California Museum of Art Thousand Oaks
Power, Thousand Oaks, CA
Accepted: Sunshine, Shark Alarm, Cotton Candy, Vote, ICBM, Religion
2018 Center on Contemporary Art
Creativity Persists, Seattle, WA
Accepted: Global Warming