2017- Cait Davis

Multidisciplinary artist Cait Davis examines existence through humor and ominous landscapes, drawing inspiration from mythology, fairy tales, psychology and science. She utilizes a range of mediums including stop-motion animation, sculpture and film production to mine for appreciation in the bizarre and challenge notions of “other,” appreciative of that which lies beneath the surface and embracing the notion that nothing is ever as simple as it seems. Cait owns a stop-motion animation studio called Springtime Jellyfish in New York City that makes animated films and commercial projects.

Cait stayed with us until July, and the stop-motion animation video she created during her residency, “Little Big Sky”, was the cornerstone of our third annual Summer Solstice Film Festival on June 24, 2017.

The bull puppet featured in the film was constructed by Cait with genuine sheep’s wool, collected on shearing day at a nearby farm in the Kingsbury community.

For her project, Cait interviewed three local residents about the history and lore of Kingsbury, TX. Using audio from the interviews, she is made a stop-motion animation where the construction of each puppet “actor” is influenced by the content of the interview stories.

The completed project became a short film examining Kingsbury, TX. In addition to the film, she is created three ceramic sculptures based on the interviews that have been installed at Habitable Spaces.

The piece features our mayor Shirley Nolen as the bull, our city attorney Sam Drugan as the cowboy, and the notorious Johnny Harborth as the train.

From the inside of a fabricated miniature honky tonk bar, each character shares a story of their rural American home-town; examining small-town lore and the importance of embracing humanity’s rich and textured history viewed through the lens of Kingsbury, Texas.

The full film “Little Big Sky” by Cait Davis is available to watch below.