first opening: a great success

The June 10th opening of the beginning of now was excellent!  The turnout was huge, the space looked great, and of course Jim's vision was realized in full. Kerianne Goodall, an impersonator of young Jim, attended the opening and perused the work and got introduced to patrons as Jim.  The exhibition is very unique, and it seemed to surprise people.  The show and the book both got really good feedback.  I noticed lots of younger folks were really interested in Jim's older paintings.  I think it's because their color palette graphic style have returned somewhat as a contemporary aesthetic trend.

There is another opening this Friday during the art walk!!! Please come back and bring friends--the show is only up for one more week total!  If you ordered one of the $25.00 books, they have arrived and will be available for retrieval during the June 17th opening.  Thanks to everyone who attended! If you weren't able to, make sure not to miss this Friday.

 

I don't think Jim has talked that much in his life..

This is the image of Jim that was the basis of Kerianne's look.  It's pretty uncanny how much she actually resembles him at that age.

 

gotta say, they nailed it..

...right down to the sock n' stocks.

the first tear-away made a few folks nervous. But they were made to buy and take.

Narcissus Pond..

this photo for some reason is awesome to me.  it somehow summarizes the experience of observing Jim's work.. and of course Teresa is an artist/photographer herself.. look at that flash shadow!

the oversized prints of the windows look amazing.

American Gothic

cast of characters: Kenny Riches (build out and exhibition assist), Andrew Calis (Jim's studio assistant), Jim, Cara Despain (book writer and exhibition producer), Mary Toscano (hand-bound book and cover fabricator), and Tj Nelson (book photographer).

 

from around the house, etc.

While Jim has been working hard doing interviews and finishing up work for the show, we have been working hard building out the space for the exhibition at the Westgate Lofts storefront.  The folks down there have been unbelievably generous and easy to work with, and the space is looking great.  We are really looking forward to Friday.  Funny, I realized today that the final layout abstractly resembles Jim's actual house somewhat--I don't know if that is accidental, or merely points to his deeply embedded sense of home and history as an architect..

Here are some pics I snapped on my phone from around the house and studio the other day.  I swear every time I visit I see something new.  And something new sees me.  Jim's house has many faces--made from found objects, a mix of his work past, or a collision thereof (look at the book for good examples of that).  Sometimes I think they might now be self-replicating while Jim is away or asleep; taking on a life of their own.

even the bathroom reflects his palette and installation sensibilities..

same shut as open..

The kitchen wall is the longest-running mega collage in the house, and it's CRAZY to look at. There is a lot of information there, as well as some great gems.   It reminds me of a public area for posting bills that builds up layers and layers of history.  Somehow all of the layers in this case relate back to Jim..

what I've realized is that taking pictures of Jim's house makes everything flat and graphic (essentially what he does in his photo work).  It's like the stagings in his house bend to his will in that way.  These are 3-d outcroppings from the wall that now look like a single photo.

there is a lot of humor in the kitchen piece..

Look! I'm even worked in now (a photocopy I gave him of one of my drawings is now adorned with one of his figures).  I'm in interesting company with Kenny Riches and Osama..

latex chest piece in the studio

early double portrait

I laugh every time I look at it..

from the early drawings I mentioned in an earlier post

 

Jim in the press!

the beginning of now has been well received so far--there are two big articles that came out this weekend about Jim, his house, and the book in anticipation of the exhibition (Friday!).  Both the reporters, one from 15Bytes and one from the trib, visited Jim's home for the interview.  Find the articles here:

Salt Lake Tribune

15Bytes

the book(s)!

The book project documenting the state of his home has been the main inspiration for Jim's show, and the opening will mark the release of two versions of the book:  the limited edition, hand-bound, artist-made version, and a soft-cover version printed through CreateSpace published by Waine and Kenny Riches publishing company, Little Zion.   The handmade edition will be two hard cover books--the photos of the house (taken by Tj Nelson), and the writing about Jim and the house written by me (Cara Despain)--both hand bound by Mary Toscano.  They come in a specially crafted, fitted box (adorned on the exterior with singular collage work by Jim), and each book also will also have an individually made dust jacket.  This edition of ten is the centerpiece of the show;  using the book itself as the medium, they have been created as part of the work for the exhibition.  They look so amazing!  A lot of work has gone into these pieces.

The second book will be a commercially printed version--a combination of some of the photos from the limited edition and the writing, and will also be available at the openings.   If you don't obtain one of the limited edition, but still want to experience the home, this is another option--we feel like providing a context for Jim and his work offers a very interesting and vital insight.

 

older work

Jim enrolled in art school in 1967 at Fort Hayes State College, where he completed both his Bachelors and Master's degrees in art.  Biographically, this moment marked a huge change in his life, and it was reflected in the work he began making.  Prior to studying art, Jim had been a practicing architect (which was his career until he retired a couple years ago), and much of that practice informs his design sensibilities both directly and indirectly.  It's interesting to look back at some of his early work, and recognize not only the influence art movements of the 1960s, 70s, and 80s had on him, but also to see images that have been mixed and amalgamated into the sort of life collage that his his self portraiture has become.  

 

 

As with the art world at large, computers and digital media marked a big transition in Jim's work.  Starting in the mid 1990s, he began condensing and using digital collage to combine more traditional media--his paintings, film photographs, and drawings--with his self-image in a new way.  Many of his photos are performative, and when collaged with other works, become the narrative component to his self-portrait.  Looking at his newer digital works you can see fragments of work from decades prior, and, through repetition and progression you can almost begin to trace a history, hence the exhibition and the book's title: the beginning of now.