William T. Carson grew up on an isolated cattle ranch in rural Montana surrounded by the pristine natural landscapes that contrast with the ever-present strip coal mines. In the fall of 2014, 90 miles of railroad tracks were proposed to be built over fertile family-owned farmlands in service of a new coal mine.  William and his father followed the proposed route on a horse-packing expedition.  UNEARTH, his first solo exhibition, is a direct product of his childhood and that expedition.

Artworks included in UNEARTH are created using two distinctly different but related processes, resulting in Erosion Drawings and Coal Paintings.  Both approaches involve the use of coal to build up layers – one on a substrate of paper, the other on a substrate of wood panel.