About
David Weed is a Seattle-based artist whose interdisciplinary practice is grounded in early studies of sociology, post-structuralism, and semiotics. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from the University of Arizona, a Master of Sociology from Northern Arizona University, a Bachelor of Science in Art Education from Northern Arizona University, and an MFA in Painting from Central Washington University.
Weed's work translates theoretical inquiry into visual form, examining how systems of meaning are constructed, maintained, and naturalized. Through fabricated interfaces—composed of metal enclosures, dials, switches, lights, and labeled categories—he invites viewers to engage in acts of adjustment and calibration, highlighting the tension between lived experience and the desire for measurable control.
Influenced by artists like Jenny Holzer and Barbara Kruger, Weed incorporates language as both a directive and destabilizing force. His work challenges the authority of familiar structures, revealing the instability underlying everyday systems of classification and interpretation.
His work as been exhibited nationally in museums, and universities, including Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN; Valdosta State University, Valdosta, GA; Drury University, Springfield, MO; Monmouth University, West Long Branch, NJ; Albright College, Reading, PA; Museum of Fine Arts, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL; Brownsville Museum of Art, Brownsville, TX; Reece Museum, East Tennessee State University, Johnson City, TN; and California Museum of Fine Art, Thousand Oaks, CA.
On/Off • 0-100s
In 2017, David Weed walked into a hardware store looking for a structure that could house an idea he had for an interactive sign. In the electrical aisle, he discovered pull boxes - sturdy metal enclosures designed to protect wire connections. They were perfect: industrial, durable, and built for modification. Their metal construction allowed for drilling, cutting, and powder coating, offering both creative control and longevity.
He purchased one, altered it, had it powder-coated, and paired it with a 12-volt LED indicator light, a toggle switch, an antenna, and a custom panel label titled RELIGION. The concept was simple: an interactive device that invited participation and choice. By flipping a switch, viewers could turn a light on or off, registering a preference through a tangible act.
When he first exhibited the piece during an art walk at his studio, he was struck by how people engaged with it. They laughed, debated, hesitated, and reflected - all in response to a single switch. That experience clarified his artistic direction. Soon after, he began incorporating push buttons and control knobs to expand the range of choices available.
Since then, he's continued creating these devices - some politically charged, others playful, abstract, or enigmatic. Each work transforms a small, deliberate action into a moment of engagement, prompting curiosity, decision-making, dialogue, self-reflection, and expression.
Studio
Open: First Thursdays, 5-9 pm, or by Appointment.
312 S. Washington St., Seattle, WA 98109
Email: onoff0100@davideweed.com
Phone: 206-605-3152
Places
Seattle, WA (current)
Flagstaff, AZ (lived)
San Diego, CA (lived)
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