Meet Cody Norton | Artist & Educator

We had the good fortune of connecting with Cody Norton and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Cody, what led you to pursuing a creative path professionally?
I pursued an artistic career for many reasons. I want to be able to share my story and the story of nature through my artwork. I want to bring to the attention of others what is happening in our local ecosystems and environments nation wide. As an artist have the chance to bring this must needed discussion about environmental conservation to the public. So, with my platform I will do what I can to educate the general public about topics that are not being discussed. Along with creating my work of art, I also have the passion to educate the youth of the next generation. I am currently a substitute teacher just North of Denton, and I am about to move to Boulder, Colorado to pursue my Masters of Fine Arts degree. With it I will go on to teach at the college level and share my knowledge of art to undergraduate students.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
My artwork is a discussion about the environment and how we as human beings have effected it. I currently focus on the North Texas and North American regions for where I draw my inspiration from, and tell the stories of what is occurring in certain ecosystems and species. As I move forward in this series I would like to touch on the subject of what if this was happening to us? What if in our homes there was a major oil spill or an infestation of an invasive species destroying our homes? I want the viewer to have more sympathy and maybe finally understand how incredibly sloppy the United States is handling the environmental crisis happening in our own backyards.

Currently I am very excited to be able to move to Colorado and attend the University of Colorado Boulder to obtain my MFA in sculpture. I was the only sculpture student accepted to the program this year and I feel incredibly proud of myself to be chosen out of a big pool of applicants. It was not easy getting in and it wont be easy moving my entire life to a totally different state but I am so excited to start this new journey. I cant wait to see what happens in the next three years of my life in Colorado.

I think if the world were to know me eventually, I want them to focus more on my work and not me as a person. I want to be an advocate and voice for the environment and the species that live there. My hope is that my message will get across and raise more awareness about the environment. And to get people involved in the major push to further development in environmental conservation and funding.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
So, I am a huge science and plant nerd outside of creating my artwork. I would take my best friend to the best plant nurseries in the DFW area like, GROW, Ruibals, North Haven Gardens, Walton’s, and many more.

And to eat we would have a vast selection of food. We would go to Amy’s Donuts here in Denton for breakfast, then hit up Cartwrights for lunch and for Dinner travel to Krum Texas to eat at Portofinos Italian Restaurant. And to wrap up the day we would go to Fry street and hang out at Cool Beans for some drinks!!!

Places to visit in the DFW area are the Dallas Museum of Art, the Dallas World Aquarium, Dallas Botanical Garden, Fort Worth Botanical Garden, and the best zoo in the DFW area the Fort Worth Zoo!!!!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
There are many people that have helped me along the way to get to where I am now as an artist and educator. One major shout out goes to my partner Dalton Clark, without him these past few years in undergrad supporting me and helping me I don’t know where I would be now. A few other people that have helped me through the years have been my family, specifically my parents BC & Jennifer Norton, my Grandma Dudu, and Aunt Terry. They let me explore and be myself growing up and without their constant support and love I would not have been able to pursue my passion in art.

Website: https://codynortonart.squarespace.com/

Instagram: cody_sculpts_paints