Born in Los Angeles, and currently based in Kansas City, Rashawn uses found materials to create paintings, sculptures, and installations that often bring forth poetic associations between objects and architecture, and invite viewers to reflect on their own past experiences. 

In his practice, Rawshan uses numerous unexpected materials that range from fabrics, bed sheets, and tassels to wood and cookies. From early on in his career, Rashawn sought to incorporate personal belongings into his pieces in an effort to infuse his own energy into his oeuvre, bringing private elements into the public sphere. For instance, in Untitled (Boo Radley), 2006, the artist employed materials such as blankets, cotton, and pockets, to create a widely lauded sculpture featured in the 2008 Whitney Biennial. In some of his most recent works, like Decor 1 (2022), the artist assembled disparate elements, such as animal figurines, flowers, and a ballet shoe, to create a kaleidoscopic and perplexing composition.  

Looking back on his experience at Fountainhead, Rashawn recalls the month spent in Miami as a time of deep introspection. Although his pieces usually implicate his body and self in an abstract way, in line with this inward-looking spirit, Rashwan used his time in Miami to depart from his typical works and develop a series of paintings that explicitly implicated his image. “I tend to mine my life conceptually as the genesis of my work, and I think this is part of what drives the making of the work,” he said. 

The public and open nature of the residency, at times, proved to be challenging for Rashwan, who found himself feeling more introverted than usual. And yet, he explained, “the [Fountainhead] team and my co-residents were really encouraging—they allowed me to make space for myself in terms of the work I needed to do and the healing I wanted to do,” he explained.