Camp Bosworth

Born in Galveston in 1964, Camp Bosworth earned his BFA at the University of North Texas in 1989, with a concentration in painting and drawing. Following his graduation, Camp created 300 abstract paintings in one year before “burning out” on abstraction. He then began creating quirky drawings of everyday objects, such as coffee cups.  

He says he became a sculptor by default, due to his lack of woodworking skills. Finding himself unable to build proper square stretchers for his canvases, he began to experiment, and started creating the clunky objects that for the past ten years have come to predominate his work. In the process, he acquired carpentry skills.  

Bosworth cites among his major influences the artists Red Grooms and Marsden Hartley, contemporary American folk art, handcrafted objects, and antiques—he is especially drawn to objects that reflect the maker’s hand and reveal the aging process through the patina of time. His greatest inspiration is his immediate environment, and Texas themes have always played a major role in his work: when he lived in Dallas, cityscapes dominated his canvases, and since relocating to Marfa eight years ago, West Texas and border culture have provided abundant subject matter for his sculptures.