Frazer Buntin

This piece includes crushed Lake Michigan limestone applied to a white oil base that was overpainted with a deep denim blue. The world is our oyster, even when it feels cracked into two pieces.

This piece is a combination of Robertson County Limestone and Coal. The intensity of the material from dust to larger stones represents the escalation of stories we make up in our heads, culminating with black, reckless thoughts.

24” x 36”

This piece is made with two different shades of Tennessee limestone, the lighter one from Davidson County and the darker from Robertson County. These pieces were from larger limestones that were crushed and sifted into very fine gravel and dust and then applied to on top of a white oil base using commercial grade adhesive. The blue accent is light oil-based paint.

The Mess in My Head is about the "background noise" of anxiety, distraction, and feelings that tug at us and tell us we need to be more than we already are. This mess and noise has different layers to it with the most dangerous parts the deepest. The blue represents consciousness or awareness of this noise as a way to overcome it.

30”x30”

This piece was painted with a white oil base and then overpainted with deep denim blue. The lines are from crushed white limestone and is fine gravel and dust that was applied with commercial-grade adhesive.

This piece is Michigan Limestone which is extremely dense and difficult to smash. The scattered limestone represents the pain we experience in our lives. The blue oil paint represents the benefit we get from that pain. We should expect suffering and experiencing pain is when we grow and learn the most about ourselves and the world.

30”x30”

This piece is made from black Tennessee coal. These small stone pieces were from a single larger piece of coal I found in a creek-bed deep in the woods. I crushed and sifted into very fine gravel and dust and then applied it on top of a white oil base using commercial grade adhesive.

The Hole in Her Heart is about the holes in our emotional lives that many of us have, most of which originate from some childhood experience, even a subtle one, that could have been perceived as trauma. As we grow up, we can fill these holes with bad things (negative behaviors) or with good things (human connection, well-being). The artwork is not to call out the negative aspects of the holes but rather the importance of acknowledging the existence of the holes themselves.

30”x30”

This diptych has an oil base that is coffee bean in color with crushed white marble. The stripes represent the story our lives are on and how we can change that story with awareness. Size is 12 x 36”. Framed

The background of this piece is a white oil base which was then over-painted with a deep grey. The stones are from the jungle of Tulum, Mexico and were crushed in studio. 30 x 30. Framed

The stone series in this piece from left to right includes Tennessee coal, Lake Michigan green limestone, Robertson County dark grey limestone, Davidson County light grey limestone. 36 x 36. Framed

This is a large piece 48 x 48” on which I first covered the entire canvas with small pieces of crushed limestone. I then over-painted the canvas with a deep blue. The white parts are not paint, but rather is white limestone dust that was applied to “raised” sections of the same shape.

This piece has a base of black oil pant. I then heated marine glue with a hair dryer and inserted the glue into a plastic syringe to apply to the canvas creating the pattern in the background. I removed the external layer of a Davidson Country limestone that is light in color using a dremel. I then smashed the limestone into a dust which I applied several layers to the canvas using commercial-grade adhesive. The result is a complex pattern that has depth, but also a lightness to it. The Secret Light is a feeling you have with another person you have a deep connection with and feel that you have something that not many others have experienced.

This uniquely shaped limestone came from a creek-bed deep in the woods of Robertson County.  The form of the stone was made by the water moving over and around the stone over many years.  I removed the entire outside layer of stone to show the smooth layer beneath.  Its beauty is in its imperfect shape.

This limestone has deep natural watermarks. The stone came from a creek deep in the woods in Robertson County. The water must have passed over it for hundreds of years to create the depth of water lines and marks. I used an electric dremel to remove the entire surface so it is smooth yet still has the original water marks.

The stone is not perfect in shape. It is very irregular, but its beauty is in its imperfections. Our lives too are imperfect and we find peace through acknowledging the beauty of our imperfections.

14” tall x 4” wide

This piece is limestone has a lighter color than most I have worked with previously. It comes from a creek about 60 miles West of Nashville which may be the difference. The stone has great watermarks and is mounted on a floating steel base.

This limestone came from a creek and has deep, large water marks from years of consistent erosion. I removed the entire surface with a dremel and then overpainted it with several coats of high gloss white paint. Our imperfections are beautiful.

Limestone, Davidson County, TN

This piece is made from a single large stone that was broken into all of these small pieces and then filtered into three different sizes. The “we” is anyone who is broken for any flaw they have or pain they carry which is basically everyone. Yet we still make waves which means showing up to life, contributing, connecting, and doing things that are positive. 36” x 36” on a white oil base.

These piece is made of green limestones from northern Lake Michigan.  The intensity of the material from dust to larger stones represents the escalation of stories we make up in our heads, culminating with the darkest stones on the bottom of the canvas where our stories blow up.  Only then do we realize the story itself is not true.  The blue square represents ways we can stop the story from progressing such as breathing, mindfulness, or talking.  36 x 36”

This work came from a piece of coal that I found in a creek-bed in Robertson County, Tennessee. To create the piece, I smashed the stone into smaller and smaller sizes and filtered into two sizes, one being a very fine dust and one small pieces. I then used marine-grade glue and commercial adhesive to attach the dust and particles to a canvas painted with a heavy oil base. The contrast of the white and black colors is stunning when viewed in person. 36” x 36”

Limestone, Robertson County, TN

The three stones represent a couple engaging with a counselor. The parallel layers of the removed sections of the three stones shows alignment in the growth of the relationship from the counseling. It means the three participants are working together and making progress in a unified manner. The wire that holds the stones together shows the emotional bond that holds together a powerful and beautiful counseling experience.

Limestone, Davidson County, TN

The Davidson County stones show a lighter color on the interior. Marriage has parallel alignment of the removed sections of the two stones, representing a relationship in alignment. The wire wrap represents a feeling of secret light that can be experienced when you have this type of alignment with another person. These are beautiful relationships.

Limestone, Davidson County, TN

For the Boundaries series, I use the distinction between the outside and the inside of the stone to create the representation of the boundaries we set in our relationships. The inside of the stone is what we find within ourselves that leads us to discover the need to set a boundary. The external layer of the stone is the actual boundary itself. As there are different types of boundaries we set with different types of people, I created several different sculptures all under this same theme.

Limestone, Robertson County, TN

For the Boundaries series, I use the distinction between the outside and the inside of the stone to create the representation of the boundaries we set in our relationships. The inside of the stone is what we find within ourselves that leads us to discover the need to set a boundary. The external layer of the stone is the actual boundary itself. As there are different types of boundaries we set with different types of people, I created several different sculptures all under this same theme.

Limestone, Davidson County, TN

For the Boundaries series, I use the distinction between the outside and the inside of the stone to create the representation of the boundaries we set in our relationships. The inside of the stone is what we find within ourselves that leads us to discover the need to set a boundary. The external layer of the stone is the actual boundary itself. As there are different types of boundaries we set with different types of people, I created several different sculptures all under this same theme.

Limestone, Robertson County

This is a unique piece in that it is very thin. When turned sideways, it is only 1.5 inches thick. The stone came from a creek bed so it has beautiful watermarks on both the original exterior in the center strip as well as the smoothed interior on the outside. Due to the large surface area, the stone took many hours of work to remove the exterior layers. As with all Boundaries pieces, this one reminds us to look inside ourselves to find the boundaries we need to set to live as we need and desire. 20 tall x 17 wide x 1 thick”

This rare limestone came from a creek bed in Robertson County. The water marks that cover the stone make it unique and graceful.

The authentication series use both the internal and external layers of the stone to express how we have to let go of old versions of ourselves and go inside ourselves to let our authentic selves be. Finding this authentic self happens in different ways so this process is represented in different sculpture types.

Limestone, Davidson County, TN

The authentication series use both the internal and external layers of the stone to express how we have to let go of old versions of ourselves and go inside ourselves to let our authentic selves be. Finding this authentic self happens in different ways so this process is represented in different sculpture types.

Limestone, Robertson County, TN

The authentication series use both the internal and external layers of the stone to express how we have to let go of old versions of ourselves and go inside ourselves to let our authentic selves be. Finding this authentic self happens in different ways so this process is represented in different sculpture types.

Limestone, Robertson County, TN

The authentication series use both the internal and external layers of the stone to express how we have to let go of old versions of ourselves and go inside ourselves to let our authentic selves be. Finding this authentic self happens in different ways so this process is represented in different sculpture types.

Limestone, Davidson County, TN

The authentication series use both the internal and external layers of the stone to express how we have to let go of old versions of ourselves and go inside ourselves to let our authentic selves be. Finding this authentic self happens in different ways so this process is represented in different sculpture types.

Limestone, Davidson County, TN

The authentication series use both the internal and external layers of the stone to express how we have to let go of old versions of ourselves and go inside ourselves to let our authentic selves be. Finding this authentic self happens in different ways so this process is represented in different sculpture types.  24 tall x 14 wide x 2 thick”

Limestone, Dickson County, TN

This type of limestone is extremely hard and impermeable due to the environment when it was created. The more I worked with this stone, the more it broke which is perhaps reflective of what the owner of the stone was going through when he gave it to me (the loss of a special place and the loss of a loved one).  Sometimes when you try to force or control things, life seems to break down.  Only when we let go of the control, when we just accept the breakage, does life start to come together to become something beautiful.  It takes work to bring life back together and the many wraps of the wire in this sculpture represent the many iterations that it takes relationships to get to something beautiful.  The pieces of the stone are us and others that are held together by the connectivity from the iterations.

Limestone, Robertson County, TN

These two stones are very permeable and filled with tiny fossils. The center sections of the stones represent the necessity of opening up to a connection. The wire weave and wrap shows the momentum that can come in a relationship that has a strong connection that moves back and forth. It takes both participants to show the beauty of the connection.