The paintings in “Down Highway 23” are the result of a fishing trip in the late spring of 2010, the fateful year of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Instead of the planet’s finest redfish, David Bates was met with a poisoned landscape crawling with reporters, politicians and well-meaning volunteers. Through the hubbub, Bates observed the faces and posture of the local fishers and crabbers. Although wary, their looks also conveyed a resolution far from resignation.

Read More