Art League Houston presents "Amazonian Days," an exhibition of paintings by David Delgado, whose practice captures mundane objects that hold present but unspoken conversations about labor, material wealth, and capitalism. This body of work references objects from 2021-2022 that the artist was given while working at an Amazon warehouse and captures the occurrence of the employer-to-employee gifting dynamic.

The still life paintings featured in the exhibition are a reminder for Delgado of a time when Amazon exchanged and bartered labor hours with gifts. During Delgado’s year at Amazon, it was commonplace for hours to be cut due to shipping shortages. Management was simultaneously giving employees random incentives, mostly in the form of gifts, which ranged from treats, food, and workwear. He documented these gifts when received and later rendered them in acrylic on panel.

Delgado’s experience at Amazon is all too familiar to the artist. Other instances of odd labor compensation come to mind for Delgado, such as when his family first immigrated to the United States from Mexico. He recalls family members would be compensated less than minimum wage but at the same time given gifts of furniture and appliances. By memorializing mundane objects, Delgado stands to disrupt the routine and question some absurdities that we disregard for the sake of normalcy.

Following the opening reception, the exhibit will be on display until July 22.