Mark Cowardin’s The Big Chats

Installed in June of 2025,

At the core of Mark Cowardin’s work is a keen awareness of his personal connection to the delicate environs of which he speaks. Much of his work begins with the observation of the absurd as it relates to the intersection of humans and the natural world, shedding light on the extreme beauty that ironically exists in some of humankinds’ most damaging examples of consumption. The BigChats installation at Charlotte Street is a large-scale version of his Chits Chats body of work that illustrates these points in a variety of ways.

This work is inspired by Mark’s personal history of growing up surrounded by mining remnants and mounds of tailings (“chat piles”) near his childhood home in rural Joplin, Missouri. These locations once served as his magical playgrounds and regular destinations for youthful imagination. Simultaneously enchanting and horrific, these remnants of lead and zinc extraction expose the needs for more thoughtful and careful balance of interactions with nature. Defying gravity and implying various functions of extraction and consumption, these works are playful illustrations of not only our dependence on nature, but also theimpact of our presence.

This project was supported by a RebuildKC Neighborhood Grant through the city of Kansas City, MO. Professional Services were provided by Multistudio.