KAREN JACOBS / KAREN CLARK JACOBS
About the Art
An ongoing interest in the linear juxtaposition of remnants and patterns has led much of my work to be classified as geometric abstraction. Organized by divisions which aren't always precise and shapes which tend to stack and interlock, the work may remain totally abstract or venture into suggestions of landscape or other elements of nature. There is, perhaps, a seed of an idea when I begin but I am quickly directed by the work, answering the needs, sorting the puzzles and discovering solutions. I work with layers of thick and thin color, washed or scumbled over a textured surface. Traces are left by the pentimento of assorted mark makers and scrached or removed paint; lines are straight, curved or gestural, surfaces are wiped, dripped and spattered; all adding to an eventual sense of accumulation and the essence of time. Though most paintings are acrylic/mixed media on canvas, I often venture into other media such as oil, watercolor, encaustic and ink... in addition to other painting forms such as the structural boxes I call Pylons which may be either wall hung or free standing. About the Artist
The early years of my art education and career were pursued as possible, second to the needs of a mobile military family. A move to Washington, D.C. permitted both the time and opportunity for studies at the Maryland College of Art and Design and with outstanding local artists and teachers. My learning experience continued through both outside sources and personal exploration wherever we happened to be. From high detail realism to total abstraction, I've always sought my own way and allowed the work to develop independently. My preferred medium is acrylic as it allows the impulsive changes necessary to my process, but I've worked extensively in nearly all painting mediums from watercolor to oils and encaustics plus several original print processes. My professional career has included representation in numerous galleries from Santa Fe to D.C., New York to New Orleans, Memphis and Atlanta. I've competed and won awards internationally and my work is in private and corporate collections around the world. I currently live in Birmingham, Alabama. Selected Media
(links in progress) ART RESIDENCY, FRANCE - The month of April, 2006, a remote art center of Cat'Art in Sainte Colombe sur l'Hers (department Aude in the south of France. No longer operating. GEOFORM - A curated collection featuring artists working with abstract geometric concepts. ARTQUOTES.NET - ARTIST INTERVIEW - Jan. 2004 BIRMINGHAM MAGAZINE - Featured Artist - October 2002 People/CANVAS FOCUS/SANTA FE June 2001 A magazine featuring artists in the area "Karen Jacobs paintings speak to the viewer in the manner of old walls, paving stones meandering through a ruin, and dreams --Charlotte Berney, FOCUS/SANTA FE THE NEW YORK TIMES Circuits Section April 20, 2000, "A Portrait of the Artist as an Internet Marketer" THE NEXT BIG THING - Movie Production using 24 paintings, 2000 "A deftly satisfying, comically coherent sendup of the world of art." -- Lawrence Van Gelder, NEW YORK TIMES "Set amongst the spoiled and the starving in New York, The Next Big Thing pits artistic intelligence against a pleasantly simple love story" -- Rachel Gordon, FILMCRITIC.COM NEW AMERICAN PAINTINGS, No. 22 1999 "A Juried Exhibition In Print" EXHIBITIONS BY INVITATION 1999 A series of one person shows on the internet"There is a sensual quality underlying the surfaces of these paintings that is lush and rich but at the same time elusive and mysterious. Experiencing these pieces, I seem to be oscillating between physical gratification of the visual senses and the sense of discovery and happenings on a prolonged personal journey. " -- Chris Ray - Exhibition Curator AMERICAN ARTIST MAGAZINE, WATERCOLOR '93 Spring Issue - Featured Article: "Inspired By Nature" NEW ORLEANS TIMES PICAYUNE 1991 Promotional Article for New Orleans Museum of Art 'Art In Bloom' Exhibition GRAPHIC 1984 "Artist's Graphics at Bama" |
Representation:
Selected Solo or Featured Exhibitions:
TURNING CORNERS - Carol Robinson Gallery, New Orleans, 2013 SPRING - Renaissance Gallery, Northport, AL, March, 2012 TIME LINES - Carol Robinson Gallery, New Orleans, April, 2011 THEN AND NOW - Retrospective Kennedy-Douglass Center For the Arts, Florence, AL, 2009 FEATURED ARTIST - Lagerquist Gallery, Atlanta, GA, January, 2009 BOKUSHO - Perry Nicole Gallery, Memphis, TN, May, 2007 BOKUSHO - NorDys Gallery, Birmingham, AL, February, 2007 NEW WORK - Carol Robinson Gallery, New Orleans, May, 2005 TIMELINES - NorDys Gallery, Birmingham, AL, February, 2005 CONTRASTING VIEWS - Meridian Museum of Art, MS, 2004 JUXTAPOSITIONS - Carol Robinson Gallery, New Orleans,, 2003 NEW WORK - Lagerquist Gallery, Atlanta, GA, May, 2003 NEW WORK - Lagerquist Gallery, Atlanta, GA, June 2002 TIME AND SPACE - Waxlander Gallery, Santa Fe, NM, Oct. 2001 OF TIME AND TIMELESSNESS - Wyndy Morehead Fine Arts, New Orleans, LA, 2000 NOTATIONS - C.R.A.I.G.. Gallery, Detroit, MI, 2000 NEW WORK - Wyndy Morehead Fine Arts, New Orleans, LA, 1998 NEW WORK - Lagerquist Gallery, Atlanta, GA, 1998 NEW WORK - Patio Gallery, Inc, Covington, LA, 1994,96,97 NEW WORK - Renaissance Gallery, Northport, AL, 1996-97 KNOT JUST GRASS- A Review of Three Series, Wm Carey College, MS, 1995 NEW WORK - Mississippi Gulf Coast College Gallery, 1994 THREE PERSON EXHIBITION - World Trade Center, New Orleans, LA, 1994 NEW WORK - Patio Gallery, Inc, Covington, LA, 1994 SERIGRAPHY - Livingston University Art Gallery, AL, 1985 Selected Group Exhibitions: GRAND OPENING GALA - Kristin Johnson Fine Art - May, 2013 MONOTYPE 2004 - Traveling Exhibition to selected art centers in Louisiana NEW WORK - Waxlander Gallery, Santa Fe NM, 2002 NEW BLOOD - Finer Things Gallery, Nashville, TN, Mar-Apr, 2002 NEW WORK - Carol Robinson Gallery, New Orleans, LA, Feb. 2002 NEW WORK, Lagerquist Gallery, Atlanta GA, 2000 NEW WORK - W.A.R.D. Gallery, Harbor Springs, MI, 1999 NEW WORK - C.R.A.I.G Gallery, Birmingham, MI, 1999 50TH ANNIVERSARY EXHIBITION - Mississippi Art Colony Retrospective, Lauren Rodgers Museum, MS, 1998 CONTEMPORARY EXHIBITION - Leon Loard Gallery, Montg.AL,1990-96-97-98 AMERICIAN WATERCOLOR SOCIETY-142nd Annual Knickerbocker Club, NYC, 1994 NWS TRAVELING-US/CANADA - National Watercolor Society, Los Angles, CA, 1994 TWO PERSON EXHIBITION - Wyndy Morehead Gallery , NOLA, 1993 WATERCOLOR USA - Springfield Museum of Art MO, 1992-93 ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL - Foothills Art Center, Golden, CO, 1992-94 MASUR MUSEUM 18TH ANNUAL - Masur Museum, Monroe, LA, 1991 MERIDIAN BI-STATE - Meridian Museum, MS, 1989,91,94 SOUTHERN WATERCOLOR SOCIETY Exchange Exhibition,Takarzuka, Japan, 1989 SEVEN ARTISTS IN ALABAMA - JR Leigh Gallery, Tuscaloosa, AL, 1986 Selected Collections Birmingham Museum of Art, Alabama Huntsville Museum of Art, Alabama Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts, Alabama Mobile Museum of Art, Mobile, Alabama Alabama Power Company, Birmingham, AL Butler Snow Law Firm, Memphis, TN NSA Corporation, Collierville, TN Adams Reese Law Firm, Memphis, TN Regions Insurance Group, Memphis, TN Wolfchase Nissan, Memphis, TN Paragon National Bank, Memphis, TN Alabama Governor & Mrs. Fob James Winton Blount Southern Regional Collection, AL Guild Hardy Architects, Biloxi, MS Sac's Fifth Avenue, Houston, TX Hotel Parc St. Charles, New Orleans, LA General Consul of Italy, New Orleans, LA City of New Orleans Parkway & Park Commission, LA AmSouth Bank, Montgomery, AL Southeastern Conference Headquarters, Birmingham, AL Deposit Guaranty National Bank of Mississippi, Jackson, MS Trustmark Bank, Meridian, MS, McComb, MS Bradley, Arant Collection, Birmingham, AL Nelson, Mullins, Riley & Scarborough, Atlanta, GA. Experience • Gallery representation throughout the US. • Solo and Featured exhibitions in fine art galleries for over 25 years • Over 100 regional, national and international competitive exhibitions, awards in most. • International traveling exhibitions including Japan and Canada. • Supplied 24 paintings for the movie, 'THE NEXT BIG THING' produced in NYC, 2000 • National Galleries Endowment Award - 73rd National Watercolor Society Exhibition - • First Place honors in the 23rd Louisiana Watercolor Society International Exhibition • Signature Membership in the National Watercolor Society, the Southern Watercolor Society and the Louisiana Watercolor Society. • Twenty year member of Mississippi Art Colony; a semi-annual artist's retreat for painting and critique. • A participant in the "Alabama Print Portfolio," included in most Alabama museum collections. • Alabama Arts Council Grant for the Governor's Arts Awards. • Board of Directors member for several art organizations including the Louisiana Watercolor Society, Mississippi Art Colony and Women's Art Alliance. • Featured artist for the PBS station WYES-TV Art Collection Twelve video promotional. • Arts Council of New Orleans Percent for Art selection on two occasions. • Resident Studio Artist, Kentuck Art Center, Northport, AL. • Maryland College of Art and Design, Silver Spring, MD 1973-76 • Prince Georges Community College, Laurel, MD 1975 • Regular participation in Mississippi Art Colony, Jackson, MS 1987- continuing • Assistant Gallery Director, Green Garden Gallery, Montgomery, AL 1977-1980 • Extensive selected studies with outstanding teachers in the fine art field. |