Photo by James Hodges
SOGH adorns every painting and photograph created by Shawn Theron over the past seven years. This word goes beyond a mere pseudonym or signature. SOGH is a living abstract for something that resonates deeper than a person or insignia. Shawn explained that, “SOGH is creating this massive entity out there in the world and leaving something better behind for everyone.” It is an idea existing all on its own and it’s growing bigger and faster every day.
Photo by James Hodges, story by Peter Cardamone.
Photo by James Hodges
The person he called Red, and nicknamed mom, gave Shawn the name and started him on his journey into the realm and direction of SOGH. It was after her death that Shawn started to follow the instructions she gave him inevitably leading him to create one of the largest bodies of work ever amassed.
Photo by James Hodges, story by Peter Cardamone.
Photo by James Hodges
March 1st 2003 was the inception of the SOGH movement. Shawn has painted 11,000 paintings since February 6, 2006 and taken over 65,000 pictures. His paintings are the first to be placed on the south pole and have spanned the globe. As a matter of fact, when I told the publishers of What Weekly that I wanted to do a profile on Shawn they realized they had one of his paintings in their stairwell. Shawn has sold or donated nearly every painting he’s created.
Photo by James Hodges, story by Peter Cardamone.
Photo by James Hodges
Things started happening quickly when Shawn approached Rebecca Hoffberger, founder and director of the American Visionary Art Museum, with a picture of one of his paintings. She took one look at it and said, “You need wall space.” After hearing the same thing from Ted Frankel, the owner of Sideshow, Shawn went ahead with putting up his paintings. He did this with the attitude that he was “not doing art but creating SOGH.” And this is where these painting and these pictures, and everything else Shawn creates, takes a back seat to his vision. He wants to take SOGH and use it to inspire people to create and work collaborate on projects used to represent unification and a better quality of life on a global scale.
Photo by James Hodges, story by Peter Cardamone.
Photo by James Hodges
We’ve all heard people speak on the subject of changing the world or doing something to make the world a better place. We often find ourselves questioning the sincerity in that sentiment. From the mouth of Shawn Theron these goals and aspirations seem attainable. Such is his enthusiasm that one cannot help but be captivated when he shares his vision. With each painting, each picture and with each experience you feel inspired to want to leave something behind or start something that will truly generate change.
Photo by James Hodges, story by Peter Cardamone.
Photo by James Hodges
As we left AVAM I realized that went in to interview Shawn about his paintings but what I got was so much more. I had the rare opportunity to understand an artist’s passion and to share in his aspirations and inspiration. I was genuinely exhilarated by the idea of where SOGH is and where it could go. It’s always refreshing to see someone create something that has the potential to change people who experience it. So, in the words of Shawn, “hopefully you can find your way to a SOGH.”
Photo by James Hodges, story by Peter Cardamone.
