For mixed media sculptor Davis Perrott, art is born in the tension between opposites—the natural and the synthetic, chaos and order, instinct and invention. His work begins with wood: sculpted, burned or stained until it bears the marks of something ancient. Onto these surfaces he layers vibrant pigments, creating artifacts that feel at once primal and futuristic, radiant and estranged.
Davis has lived in Asheville for five years, long enough for the mountains to feel like home. He was first drawn into the River Arts District a year and a half ago, not as an artist but as an observer. “I was exposed to so much art that I had never seen before,” he recalls. “Looking back, it feels like a golden period. I remember walking through the galleries almost daily, surrounded by art, and feeling deeply inspired.” That momentum pushed him to create his own work, shaped through countless failed experiments and persistence.
His contributions to the "Mountain Memories" exhibition reflect both his vision and the region’s resilience after Hurricane Helene. "Rhythm of Reality" transforms carved and burned pine wood with oil paints into a vibrant wall sculpture. The Shape that Refused to Collapse begins with oak, scarred and textured, then reimagined through layers of acrylic. And "How Fire Learns to Climb," a freestanding walnut sculpture, carved, burned and painted, embodies the restless energy of destruction and renewal.
The upheaval of Helene revealed new layers of meaning in Davis’s practice. The storm left behind not just physical destruction, but a feeling of instability that resonated with the themes already central to his work. “People are adapting, reshaping, and continuing forward,” he says of the arts community. “That spirit has been inspiring to be around despite all the disappointments.”
Beyond Asheville, Davis carries inspiration from landscapes like the rolling hills of Eastern Washington’s Palouse. Yet it is here, in the Blue Ridge Mountains, where he is finding his voice. His sculptures echo the unstable merge of the world that shaped us and the world we’ve built, offering beauty in the friction between the two.
You can view Davis' pieces "Rhythm of Reality" and "How Fire Learns to Climb" in the exhibit "Mountain Memories" at Asheville Regional Airport, on display through October 30, 2025. The exhibit is displayed in the Asheville Regional Airport Art Gallery located in the new North Concourse, post security – please note only ticketed passengers can view this area.
