Embracing iconic American imagery and iconography from LIFE magazine, the Apollo 11 Moon landing, the American West, the atomic bomb, and more, he delves into how the relentless pursuit of an illusory utopia throughout American history has influenced ideas of national identity. Jackson’s own personal experiences and embodiment of the past and present take center stage in his artistic process. At the heart of his work lies a profound fascination with finding similarities within binaries and dichotomies, particularly the coexistence of beauty and horror.
The research and experimentation that forms the core of Jackson’s creative process challenges the mythologies of artistic genius often associated with his distinctive style. Using a diverse range of traditional, industrial, and found materials – such as Formica, molten lead, and scorched wood – the artist synthesizes new meanings and interpretations. His materials hold as much significance as the conceptual foundations of his pieces, often subverting viewers’ initial expectations and impressions. Layered and complex, his works invite contemplation and provoke questions about medium, materiality, and meaning, all of which can only be answered through sustained examination, analysis, and inquiry.
Evident of Jackson’s ongoing exploration of art historical references and the intersections between physical and digital mediums of art, his latest creations delve into the complexities and ambiguities of authorship. Drawing parallels between the political and social issues of the 19th century and those of the present day, Jackson homes in on the role of memory as a central component of his practice. Utilizing a semi-autonomous laser process that infuses colors and forms with an otherworldly essence, the artist delves into the history of landscape painting, drawing connections to the conventions of landscape in science fiction, film, and literature, where the unfamiliar and the familiar collide.
www.ftn-books.com has the GEM invitation nowe available.
