Elizabeth Maria Hudson’s Dream Soul
February 15 - March 15, 2025
Martha's is pleased to present Elizabeth Maria Hudson's solo exhibiton, "Dream Soul." The artist's first show with the gallery is full of deep, dreamy, and poetic watercolor paintings.
Elizabeth Maria Hudson’s work is centered on Black American folklore and she is especially drawn to the tales collected by John Mason Brewer, who focused on black Texan stories. Interpreting this source material through the medium of watercolor, Hudson creates a visual language that honors and expands upon oral traditions, offering new ways to document and deepen our understanding of folklore and its significance in contemporary black rural life and cosmologies.
Elizabeth Maria Hudson (b. Los Angeles, 1989) is a watercolor figurative painter from Dallas, Texas. She studied painting and drawing at Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts and has a BA in history and art history from the University of Texas at Austin. She has exhibited at the George Washington Carver Museum, Big Medium, and Pencil on Paper Galley. She currently lives and works in Austin, Texas.
Each work is accompanied by a poem written by Elizabeth herself.
wiley blvd dog spirit/ kids don’t listen, 2025 Watercolor on paper 12x 16 inches, 17 x 21 inches framed with museum glass
the family lived atop the hill but,
dog wanted a new home as she
watched traditions fall
the trees knew the children before
they arrive
and they shout
“thank god the family is still alive!”
sepia mojo map, 2025 Watercolor on cut canvas 17 x 17 inches, 25 x 25 inches framed with museum glass
They looked everywhere for something
that was never lost
In an effort to stay alive she bought
time from anyone who was willing to
sell theirs
for a bit of mojo
the contents of the bag outweighed
the tiny sack
He cried out
“I just want my mojo back!”
magdalene map, 2025 Watercolor on cut canvas 17 x 17 inches, 25 x 25 inches framed with museum glass
follow the trails left by the roots
(you have them, too)
on your way through the woods pick
some
ivy for Mary, she’s lost her sight
she was to find it in third heaven
buried beneath the poke weeds
dig deep enough she’d find her spark,
her wiles, her will to ignite
pops departure, 2025 Watercolor on paper 20 x 24 inches, 25 x 31 inches framed with museum glass
on an indigo black night
she found him
pulsating between the dream, and his
dream
the waters were warm with the
animations of a thousand souls and as
they danced he tried to stay afloat
“sweet darkness,” she said to her son
“rest and your folks will soon come.”
herbal maniac, 2025 Watercolor on paper 20 x 16 inches, 25 x 21 inches framed with museum glass
we found something earthy sweet to
feed our desperation
in this haste was a familiar face
we believed snake oil man
when he said the herbs were THE way
to salvation...
he made such a good case
Confirmation of his exaggeration
come in the quiet of our mother’s
kitchens
Where, back to our roots we trace
anima house, 2025 Watercolor on paper 16 x 20 inches, 21 x 25 inches framed with museum glass
once I knew a place
I dreamed of happy little beings
once I heard their voices
telling stories, playing, singing
once I saw their souls
lit from every jar
then, in a blink they vanished
collected from afar
brother rabbit saw, 2025 Watercolor on paper 20 x 24 inches, 25 x 31 inches framed with museum glass
don’t ask questions before you fall asleep
when you don’t heed brother rabbit’s
warnings
he sits, waits, and watches
and now, that air escapes your grasps
brother can’t intervene
with the threat of the unseen
promise of the 80s, 2025 Watercolor on paper 16 x 12, 21 x 17 inches framed with museum glass
legend of the digger stars
a generation thrown away
harvest crops now seen from space
the universe is yours today