The Weight of it All by Don Pendleton

Heron Arts is pleased to present The Weight of it All, a solo exhibition by Don Pendleton. The opening reception is April 25th, 2026, from 6-9 pm. It is free and open to the public. The exhibition will be on view by appointment only until May 30th.

The title, The Weight of it All, is a double entendre, alluding to the bold, heavy lines found in Don’s paintings and also the impact of political and cultural upheavals occurring worldwide. Don balances his linework for lighter color palettes chosen with emotion and aspiration to endure our current afflictions. The core of Don’s practice is documenting the human condition: how people manage to share space in the world, the potential for tension, disappointment, sadness, the pitfalls of relationships, the struggle to exist in a world where we cannot control the environments, and conditions we’re locked into. His visual journal showcased in this exhibition is a reflection of loss and grief and victory and defeat.

Heavily influenced by skateboard graphics from the 1980’s, Don’s artistic language focuses on containing colorful shapes within black lines, harnessing clean swooping curves that also translate well into his commercial projects. The flowy and interlocking linework he conjures with acrylic tells short stories with the hopes of the viewer walking away with their own interpretation and narrative. 

This past winter has been particularly difficult for me for a variety of reasons and this work has given me a place to store and offload some of tension and anxiety. The world has become a frightening and disappointing place and art is how I deal with all of it. The weight of it all can feel like too much to bear at times but it is part of the human experience.

My goal has never been to tell a story with the paintings but to create a mood with the color, space and shapes that I hope viewers can connect with and relate to, even if it’s not a snapshot of the happiest or lightest moments.

I am not a “trained” painter. I started painting to contribute to fundraisers after my art became recognizable from being on skateboards. I paint very much in the same way screen prints are created by laying down shapes of colors in acrylic paint and then “trapping” them with a darker line.

For me, painting is about compartmentalizing emotion very much in the same way that I process it mentally: it’s controlled to a degree but it’s always flawed in some way. Sometimes I lighten the colors in an effort to cheer myself up and keep work from becoming too heavy for myself. Sometimes I create chaos with the lines, sometimes there’s an order and a rhythm to it all. It very much all depends on what’s going on in my life when the work was created.

Don Pendleton is an American artist, Grammy Award winning designer and illustrator working out of Dayton, OH. He has produced work for over 50 brands across the globe and participated in more than 40 group exhibits and solo shows internationally, including a solo museum exhibit at the Huntington Museum of Art ('Fine Lines') in 2014. His work has been featured in over 40 magazines over the years from various art, skateboard and culture publications (including the cover of Juxtapoz Magazine with a feature article in the issue) and he continues to work commercially with design and illustration as well as dedicating time to the fine art realm with his painting.

Heron Arts

Heron Arts was founded in 2013 by Mark Slee, an active member of San Francisco's creative community, organizing events since the mid-2000s. He is joined in 2015 by director Tova Lobatz, who is pursuing ambitious programming that encompasses installations and experiential, interactive environments, alongside traditional gallery exhibitions. Collectively they hope to provide San Francisco with a fresh outlook on contemporary beauty in the arts.

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