HENDERSON BUTTON'S SHOW FAMILY OF FOOLS

 Henderson Button: Family of Fools

NOVEMBER 2022

    Throughout history, performers have been employed as licensed fools. The jesters often formed a nomadic family, hired together to entertain royalty. Their performative foolishness exploited, jesters were also used for psychological warfare, often sent to mock or provoke the enemy. In the way of their comedy, the fool also enjoyed ‘jester’s privilege’ to mock and talk freely without punishment- jesters could give bad news to the king that no one else would dare deliver. From the fringes of society, the fools were pulled out for their comedic relief and returned back when their utility had expired- but the symbolic caricature of the fool’s perception reigns on.


Button’s work draws upon traditional archetypes of ‘the fool’ to cast an ensemble within which to explore jest, mockery, and friendship. The undignified intimacy of family and self perception permeates the work which once again pulls out the fool from the fringes. 



Henderson Button was born in North Carolina in 1997. He received his BFA in Painting from Appalachian State in 2020 and is currently based in Richmond, Virginia. Button works in paint, clay and pencils, and has been drawing from the same roster of characters since middle school.


Yellow Vanitas, 24” x 18”, acrylic on canvas, 2022. $650


Vampire Still Life, 24” x 20”, acrylic on canvas, 2022. $650


The Wizard, 40” x 30”, acrylic on canvas, 2022, $1,250


Family of Fools, 60” x 50”, acrylic on canvas, 2022. $2,500

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