© Cody VanderKaay

Red (Barn) Relief (for Ida and Catherine), 2026. Ink and graphite under enamel on wood. 43 × 35 × 2.5 inches.

DETAIL: Red (Barn) Relief (for Ida and Catherine), 2026.

(Yellow-Black) Tilted Plane, 2026. Enamel, acrylic, hand-cut and shaped wood relief. 14 × 23 × 3 inches.

The foreshortened effect is exaggerated when seen head on. The form physically tapers from thick to thin along all four sides

The Same Person, 2026. Graphite on paper. 32 × 32 inches.

The Same Person considers the relationships between occupation, identity, authority, and social value, suggesting that a president, worker, parent, artist, or criminal might be the same individual at different moments in a lifetime. Through a continuous, nonhierarchical arrangement of social roles, the work presents a simple contradiction: identities, positions, and circumstances change, while the person remains the same. The circle suggests a society composed of interconnected individuals whose differences coexist within a shared structure.

Flattening, 2020. Enamel on uniquely shaped Oak relief. 32 x 43 inches.

Sentimental X’s, 2025. Mattress ticking on uniquely shaped wood panel; two elements: 11 × 12 inches each.

Sentimental X’s, 2025. Mattress ticking on uniquely shaped wood panel; two elements: 11 × 12 inches each.

Sentimental X’s, 2025. Mattress ticking on uniquely shaped wood panel; two elements: 11 × 12 inches each.

Six Views, 2017. Cast concrete. 9 elements: 18 x 42 x 42 inches overall

Six Views, 2017. Detail

Transposed Houses (cross-gabled), 2015-17. Detail

Transposed Houses, 2016-17. Faux bois shelf paper on rag stock. 18 framed collages: 25 x 18 inches each (foreground: Six Views)

Transposed Houses, 2016-17. Faux bois shelf paper on rag stock. 18 framed collages: 25 x 18 inches each (foreground: Six Views)

Transposed Houses, 2016-17. Faux bois shelf paper on rag stock. 18 framed collages: 25 x 18 inches each

Transposed Houses (dual-pitched gabled), 2015-17. Detail

Transposed Houses (half-hipped), 2015-17. Detail

Subliminal Landscape, 2025. Automotive enamel on wood, 4 parts: 23 × 23 inches each.

Subliminal Landscape, 2025. Automotive enamel on wood, 4 parts: 23 × 23 inches each.

Subliminal Landscape, 2025. Automotive enamel on wood, 4 parts: 23 × 23 inches each.

Subliminal Landscape, 2025. Automotive enamel on wood, 4 parts: 23 × 23 inches each.

All Ways Always, 2016. Hardware cloth and spray paint. 25 x 25 x 1.5 inches.

All Ways, 2016. Detail

All Ways, 2016. Detail

Bündner Schist, 2017. Crêpe tape. 70 x 153 inches.

Bündner Schist, 2017. Detail

The Blind Leading the Blind (after Bourgeois), 2018. Painted wood. 36 x 36 x 36 inches arranged

The Blind Leading the Blind (after Bourgeois), 2018. Painted wood. 36 x 36 x 36 inches arranged

The Blind Leading the Blind (after Bourgeois), 2018. Detail

Taken Together, 2026. Pencil on paper. 32 × 32 inches.

Taken Together considers the many things we share that make us human. Words and phrases describing the body, emotion, memory, need, and everyday experience occupy the same visual field. Their continuous circular arrangement has no fixed beginning or end. Through repetition and accumulation, distinct experiences contribute to a whole that no single word can define.

Ball Drop, 2017. Assorted material studies, finished artwork, heirloom objects, router incisions, pencil markings, ephemera and residue items on Pinewood sheathing. 8 x 24 feet (shelf depth is 5 inches)

Ball Drop, 2017. Detail

Ball Drop, 2017. Detail

Gray Relief, 2017. Detail

Gray Relief, 2017. Basswood and spray paint. 21 x 22 x 1 inch.

Gray Relief, 2017. Basswood and spray paint. 21 x 22 x 1 inch.

Wishfield, 2018. Artist's wishes, hand-set eyelets on off-white paper. 32 x 25 x 2 inches framed

Wishfield, 2018. Detail

Wishfield, 2018. Detail

Some Time, 2016. Detail

Some Time, 2016. Detail

Some Time, 2016. Hardware cloth and spray paint. 26 x 26 x 1.5 inches

Backstage, 2019. Detail

Backstage, 2019. Detail

Backstage, 2019. Basswood and latex paint. 32 x 16 x 11 in.

LEFT: Lodestone (High Dive), 2025. Enamel on shaped wood. 96 x 9 x 9 inches.

RIGHT: Lodestone (Roulette), 2025. Enamel on shaped wood. 96 x 9 x 9 inches.

The titles High Dive and Roulette suggest two distinct forms of risk: one involving a deliberate leap into uncertainty, the other surrendering an outcome to chance. Both imply a willingness to accept the possibility of failure. Paired with the bending columns, these associations reinforce the tension between stability and instability. The columns appear straight and structurally sound from certain viewpoints, yet visibly bend and compress from others, suggesting that what appears secure or dependable may be less certain than it seems.

Orange Shed, 2016. Detail

Orange Shed, 2016. Detail

Orange Shed, 2016. Latex paint on Basswood. 28 x 40 x 3 inches.

Blue Beach House, 2018. Latex paint on Basswood. 29 x 29 x 6 inches

Blue Beach House, 2018. Right side view

Telegraph (#15), 2012. Ink on paper. 22 x 30 inches.

Telegraph (#14), 2012. Ink on paper. 22 x 30 inches.

Telegraph Sequence (# 14, 10, 16 & 6), 2012. Ink on paper. 4 framed drawings: 22.5 x 30.5 inches each.

Telegraph (#6), 2012. Ink on paper. 22 x 30 inches.

Telegraph (#16), 2012. Ink on paper. 22 x 30 inches.

Telegraph Diptych (#15 & 17), 2012. Ink on paper. 2 framed drawings: 22.5 x 30.5 inches each.

Through a Happy Coincidence, 2015. Die-cut book pages on rag stock. Collage in three parts: 22 x 22 inches each.

Through a Happy Coincidence, 2015. Left panel

Through a Happy Coincidence, 2015. Center panel

Through a Happy Coincidence, 2015. Right panel

Through a Happy Coincidence, 2015. Detail

Happyland Meeting Place, 2014, latex paint on Basswood, 10 x 15 x 17 inches

Happyland Meeting Place, detail

Puppet Theater, 2014, latex paint on Basswood, 10 x 12 x 11 inches

Puppet Theater, detail

Gray Series, 2014-15, sculptures in situ

The Pickle Joint, 2015, latex paint on Basswood, 16 x 15 x 9 inches

Room with a View, 2014, latex paint on Basswood, 12 x 10 x 7 inches

Last Outpost, 2014, latex paint on Basswood, 16 x 11 x 9 inches

Anna's Windmill, 2014, latex paint on Basswood, 18 x 11 x 11 inches

Up-front Porch, 2015, latex paint on Basswood, 10 x 14 x 11 inches 

Hotel Motel, 2015, latex paint on Basswood, 21 x 15 x 13 inches

The Many Much More Store, 2014, latex paint on  Basswood, 12 x 15 x 14 inches

NIMBY Shelter, 2014, latex paint on Basswood, 8 x 8 x 3 inches (wall mount)

Anonymous Content, Broad Street Gallery, Athens, GA, 2005. Colored paper and reflected fluorescent light. Gallery exterior.

Anonymous Content, Broad Street Gallery, Athens, GA, 2005.

Installation element: miniature door and spray paint. 8 x 3 inches; installed overhead, 7 feet from floor opposite 'white door'.

Installation element: miniature door and spray paint. 8 x 3 inches; installed overhead, 7 feet from floor opposite 'black door'.

Installation detail: graphite on wall. 78 x 140 inches.

Western Ziggurats, 2015-16. Enamel on wood. 9 elements: 6 x 1.5 x 6 inches each.

Western Ziggurats, 2015. Faux bois contact paper on rag stock. 4 framed collages: 25 x 25 inches each.

Western Ziggurats, 2015. Faux bois contact paper on rag stock. 4 framed collages: 25 x 25 inches each.

Western Ziggurats, 2015. Detail

Western Ziggurat (front-gabled left), 2015.

Western Ziggurat (side-gabled left), 2015.

Western Ziggurat (front-gabled right), 2015.

Western Ziggurat (side-gabled right), 2015.

Within/Without, Ann Arbor Art Center Aquarium Gallery Installation, 2019

Within/Without, Ann Arbor Art Center Aquarium Gallery Installation, 2019

Within/Without, Ann Arbor Art Center Aquarium Gallery Installation, 2019

Within/Without, Ann Arbor Art Center Aquarium Gallery Installation, 2019

Vier Verfblikken, 2017. Copper and steel. 4 elements: 8 x 7 inches each.

Vier Verfblikken, 2017. Detail

Vier Verfblikken, 2017. Copper and steel. 4 elements: 8 x 7 inches each.

Vier Verfblikken, 2017. Copper and steel. 4 elements: 8 x 7 inches each.

Field Study (working model), 2015. Detail

Field Study (working model), 2015. Underlayment and plywood. Two elements: 18 x 156 x 78 inches overall (background Gray Series sculptures)

Field Study (working model), 2015. Alternate view, (background Gray Series sculptures)

Modern Decline, 2012, cut milk crates. 18 elements: 12 x 30 x 108 inches

Modern Decline, 2012. Detail

Modern Decline, 2012. Detail

Lodestone, 2025. Enamel on shaped wood. 96 x 9 x 9 inches.

The column appears straight and structurally sound from certain viewpoints, yet visibly bent and compressed from others, suggesting that what appears secure or dependable may be less certain than it seems.

Yellow Cabin, 2016, Latex paint on Basswood, 14 x 19 x 10 inches

Yellow Cabin, 2016, detail

Yellow Cabin, 2016, detail

Automatic Drawing (July 12), 2017. Crepe paper tape. 96 x 192 inches.

Automatic Drawing (July 12), 2017. Detail

Automatic Drawing (July 13), 2017. Crepe paper tape. 96 x 96 inches.

Automatic Drawing (July 13), 2017. Detail

Automatic Drawing (July 14), 2017. Crepe paper tape. 50 x 50 inches.

Automatic Drawing (July 14), 2017. Detail

Automatic Drawing (July 14), 2017. Crepe paper tapee. 40 x 30 inches.

Automatic Drawing (July 14), 2017. Detail

Lodestone, 2017. Petrified tree-print formica over oak column. 81 x 8 x 8 inches: 9 inches square at midpoint.

Vertical Relief, 2012. Oil, acrylic, enamel, and latex paint on wood. 50 x 22 x 2 inches

Vertical Relief, 2012. Detail

Interior/Exterior: Structural Constellations, Athens Institute for Contemporary Art, Athens, GA, 2014.

Vespucci, the collaborative entity comprised of Cody VanderKaay and artist Rusty Wallace, responded to the entirety of the gallery space.

Deriving inspiration from Kurt Schwitters’ cathedral-like installation Merzbau: Hanover (1923-36), Josef Albers’ geometric drawings, and the writing of Stephen De Staebler, the formal structure of the work was made reflexive of the angles, lines and proportions of this historic architectural space-formerly an early 20th century southern railroad depot-using cardboard, plastic sheeting and wood. 

This was the first time in ATHICA's 15-year history that the organization had allowed its space to be used for an independent, collaborative project.

(at the end of) the Rainbow, 2018. Soapsuds on glass; digital print; 40 x 50 inches

Two Voices Carry Farther than One exhibit at Whittier College Greenleaf Gallery, Los Angeles, CA, 2017, collaboration with Julie Wills.

left to right: 
Library (What We Already Know), 2017
Daytime Moon/Nighttime Sun, 2017
Axis, 2017

Library (What We Already Know), 2017
travel journal, thesaurus, captain's log, artificial lemons

Fibonacci Moon (Forever), 2017. Rulers, rope, cardboard, plaster.

Fibonacci Moon (Forever), detail

Stellar Dynamics, 2017

Axis, 2017

Puigmal, 2016. Detail

Left to right: (background) Gray Relief, 2017; Puigmal, 2016, cast concrete, 17 x 22 x 20 inches; Arcalod, 2016, cast concrete, 15 x 15 x 16 inches; Chamechaude, 2016, cast concrete, 15 x 14 x 15; (foreground) Vignemale, 2017, cast concrete, 18 x 27 x 15 inches

Puigmal, 2016. Detail

Puigmal, 2016. Detail

Chamechaude, 2016. Detail

Arcalod, 2016. Detail

Vignemale, 2017. Detail

Stellar Dynamics, collaboration with Julie Wills, 2017, collage (die-cut pages from handyman's guide, sandpaper, tracing paper, letters, pencil, thread) 

Daytime Sun/Nighttime Moon, Collaboration with Julie Wills, 2017, sandpaper, twine, tacks, graphite, artificial lemon

I Like Nice Things, 2009. Vinyl lettering on paper bag. 6 x 9 inches

Blockbuster, 2008. Latex paint, string, yarn and masking tape. 40 x 80 inches.

Blockbuster, 2008. Latex paint, string, yarn and masking tape. 40 x 80 inches.

Blockbuster, 2008. Detail

(Red–White) Tilted Plane, 2026. Enamel, hand-cut and shaped wood relief. 15 × 23 × 5 inches. The foreshortened effect is exaggerated when seen head on. The form physically tapers from thick to thin along all four sides

After Morandi, 2017. Detail

After Morandi, 2017. Detail

After Morandi, 2017. Mixed-media. 10 x 120 x 5 inches.

Automatic Drawings (April 19), 2017. Installed at China Hutch Projects, Chestertown, MD. 

Automatic Drawing (April 19), 2017. Crepe paper tape. 66 x 78 inches. Installed at China Hutch Projects, Chestertown, MD. 

Detail: Automatic Drawing (April 19), 2017. Crepe paper tape. 66 x 78 inches. Installed at China Hutch Projects, Chestertown, MD. 

Automatic Drawing (April 19), 2017. Crepe paper tape. 23 inch diameter. Installed at China Hutch Projects, Chestertown, MD. 

Automatic Drawing (April 19), 2017. Crepe paper tape. 23 x 23 inches. Installed at China Hutch Projects, Chestertown, MD. 

Automatic Drawing (April 19), 2017. Crepe paper tape. 31 x 23 inches. Installed at China Hutch Projects, Chestertown, MD. 

Beside Oneself, 2012. Detail

Beside Oneself, 2012. Acrylic on Pinewood. 31 x 5.5 x 1.5 inches.

Beside Oneself, 2012. Detail

Photographs from the 2012 solo exhibition Messages From Invisible Sources at TWIN KITTENS Gallery, Atlanta, GA. Personal affirmations broadcast within an empty, expansive Mojave Desert landscape via billboard structures. Left to right: Emphasis Does More With Less,  Saying A Good Thing Says A Lot, A Goodbye Becomes The Next Hello

Untitled (rectangle), 2014. Pen and pencil on paper. 22 x 30 in.

Untitled (mirror), 2014. Pen and pencil on paper. 22 x 22 in.

Untitled (The Rumor of Limits), 2015, Crepe tape & matte medium on canvas-covered cradled panel, 30 x 30 x 2 in.

Untitled (The Rumor of Limits), Crepe tape & matte medium on canvas-covered cradled panel, 30 x 30 x 2 in. 

Untitled (The Rumor of Limits), 2015, detail.

Untitled (within), 2014. Pen and pencil on paper. 22 x 22 in.

Untitled (small square), 2014. Pen and pencil on paper. 15 x 15 in.

Untitled (large square), 2014. Pen and pencil on paper. 30 x 30 in.

Untitled (large square), detail