Jason Craighead’s new exhibition ”The Map-less Journey” presents a versatile group of new abstract works by the artist based in Raleigh, North Carolina. In the mixed-media works of Craighead, drawing, painting and writing are fused together seamlessly. The surprising compositions and a fragile balance between the frantic pencil marks, large areas of color and the opposites of soft washes of white paired with deep black bring tension and drama on the canvas.
Chance is also instrumental in Craighead’s artistic process. Before the blank canvas is pinned to the studio wall it is deliberately left on the studio floor to absorb dropped paint and spillage, along with other marks as he moves around his studio working on other paintings. Torn pages alongside scribbles and written passages here and there on the canvases derive from literature, music and poetry close to him.
Earlier shows by Craighead have shown a more minimalistic side of the painter, whereas these new works have a certain restless quality to them, yet they retain the familiar elements of his earlier work; the partially exposed canvas, ultramarine blue, warm reds and the opposites of black and white and a strong sense of movement, all of which tie the exhibition together.
Artist Statement: The Map-less Journey
“We live in a state of distraction, always searching for ’reasons’. The experience of being a human being is a map-less journey and it seems the harder one tries to understand it, the farther one might be from living it. If we knew what was happening, where we came from, and where it is all headed, there would be no purpose – and perhaps that’s what it is: just blips and segments of time and consciousness, memories, dreams, imaginations. We are conduits of our own thinking. All life is on the map-less journey, with no defined beginning or end. Be kind, be open and enjoy the journey.”
Craighead’s works have been exhibited in solo and group exhibitions across the United States, most notably his solo exhibition at the Raleigh Art Museum in 2018. The new show ”The Map-less Journey” is the fourth appearance in Finland for Craighead.
Chance is also instrumental in Craighead’s artistic process. Before the blank canvas is pinned to the studio wall it is deliberately left on the studio floor to absorb dropped paint and spillage, along with other marks as he moves around his studio working on other paintings. Torn pages alongside scribbles and written passages here and there on the canvases derive from literature, music and poetry close to him.
Earlier shows by Craighead have shown a more minimalistic side of the painter, whereas these new works have a certain restless quality to them, yet they retain the familiar elements of his earlier work; the partially exposed canvas, ultramarine blue, warm reds and the opposites of black and white and a strong sense of movement, all of which tie the exhibition together.
Artist Statement: The Map-less Journey
“We live in a state of distraction, always searching for ’reasons’. The experience of being a human being is a map-less journey and it seems the harder one tries to understand it, the farther one might be from living it. If we knew what was happening, where we came from, and where it is all headed, there would be no purpose – and perhaps that’s what it is: just blips and segments of time and consciousness, memories, dreams, imaginations. We are conduits of our own thinking. All life is on the map-less journey, with no defined beginning or end. Be kind, be open and enjoy the journey.”
Craighead’s works have been exhibited in solo and group exhibitions across the United States, most notably his solo exhibition at the Raleigh Art Museum in 2018. The new show ”The Map-less Journey” is the fourth appearance in Finland for Craighead.
