Jason Flack

Artist Statement

Jason is an “Urban Folk”, expressionist artist, community leader, speaker and a native of Johnson City, Tennessee. His work has been heavily influenced by personal life experiences as well as many cartoons, comic books, and music. He has been drawing for over 30 years and painting for fourteen. Jason has entrenched himself in an all-things-art lifestyle, being a part of local art advocacy and bridging the gap between self-taught and academia. He was called to start painting after the sudden death of his twin sister, Jessica, in 2010. He has always represented both sides of the tracks being half black, half white, and having both a rural and an urban upbringing.

Jason’s work elicits energy by using bright colors surrounded by bold black lines. Since the beginning, he has used painting as therapy to direct grief into movement and thoughtfulness and to hold a mirror to society. Jason believes that the best way to indicate your community is healthy is by supporting, promoting and showcasing local talent. He was influenced by the work of many artists including: Chris Johansson, Margaret Kilgallen, Big Al Carter, Genndy Tartakovsky, Keith Haring, and Jean-Michel Basquiat.

In Jason's recent work, he analyzes certain facets of what we regard as popular entertainment within music and television--especially when it comes to what is accepted as modern "black culture." The widely accepted raunchiness and violent imagery gets lost within the social and political battles of late. Often, to avoid criticism or labeled in some way, this subject is typically ignored. Rappers and actors, with international fame, glorify behavior that not all people of color condone or support. Most importantly, the youth are seduced and influenced more than ever before. Some communities can separate from the impact of the brutal, overly sexualized content, while others must live next door to it. If music reaches our soul, what does it do to our psyche? Is there a difference between glorification and narration? Entering spaces where this is unpopular to discuss, Jason asks questions and contests through his art, to promote conversations about the condition of what we all call "culture."