| Jason Messinger Artist Statement | Share This
Chicago, IL |
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http://JasonMessingerART.comThe art of Jason Messinger explores the boundary between identity and abstraction. His artwork is certain in its aesthetic quality, yet open in its intrinsic meaning. His tile murals are arranged in 'mega-mosaic' grids of many individual 8" or 12" square hand-cast and hand-painted in glaze ceramic tiles. The imagery on each tile recreates a symbolic picture, which hovers on the implied rather than the implicit, allowing the viewer to dialogue with the work and invest each image with personal meaning. Open-ended in narrative and aesthetic meaning, they allow the viewer to provide their own interpretations of the images and their 'story'. Similarly, the murals are modular in design, with no one configuration or sequence. Liberated from the artist's control, each owner/curator is offered multiple ways to arrange the 8" or 12" square tiles, thus resetting the 'narrative fields' for the viewer. Each tile is mounted on a wooden frame, which projects if off the wall, and a wall cleat, allowing easy re-arrangement.
The artist also creates ceramic sculpture, hand built from hollow slab-constructed clay, and constructed in the round. The work twists and turns as one moves around it, often creating surprising changes in appearance, and making a sort of visual dance out of stillness, which is activated by the eye. Abstract in form, but with a strong figurative sense, each piece again places the viewer in control of the meaning, by hovering between abstraction and representation, opening the door for a dialogue between artwork and viewer.
While the artist has had some success in exposure to regional and coastal markets, he has not yet been viewed in New York City, still regarded as a jewel in the art world crown. Williamsburg, Brooklyn has established itself as the new frontier of emerging talents in New York City, and having the opportunity to show there could open many new opportunities to expanding his artistic range and exposure. Additionally, the residency would allow close proximity to some of the new amazing talents in the area, and could offer the artist new chances to create work in collaborative and 'inspired by' traditions that are an essential part of artist's maturity. As 3rd Ward currently does not have ceramic facilities, it is hoped that residency work would offer a chance to work in other mediums which the artist is currently less familiar with, and also create vital synergism with local talent and professionals.
