POPSKULL — a slang term for cheap whisky — features a dynamic collection of mixed media works on wood panels. Built up in intricate layers of paint, oil stick, graphite, collage, and original drawings, each piece is sealed beneath a surface of clean, glossy resin. Beneath their striking finish lies a cacophony of imagery: targets, skulls, stripes, text, and restless mark-making.
Playful and raw, these compositions conjure dive bars, sideshow carnivals, and weathered garages. At once bold, loud, and unruly, the works embody the disorientation—and allure—of indulgence, like the lingering chaos of a night with popskull itself. Their reflective surfaces draw the viewer into the narrative, turning each artwork into a mirror that asks us to consider our own place within the visual noise.
Hanscom’s practice is deeply rooted in personal history and the influences of pop culture. Trained at Emily Carr University of Art + Design, he combines traditional drawing materials with unconventional industrial elements, including epoxy resin and auto-body pin-striping. His works channel a rebellious, romanticized aesthetic shaped by passions for music, film, and hot-rod/motorcycle culture, as well as an enduring fascination with space adventures and classic westerns.
“My work embraces the fragmented, the playful, and the crude,” says Hanscom. “It’s about layering memories, influences, and contradictions until they collide into something whole.”
