03.20.2011
ART COLLABORATION: Mindstate, Urban Tee, Ghost Trees Tee
WEBSITE: www.jessereno.com
Contemporary-primitive – of the present, searching for understanding through introspection, a basic wisdom of things based on connection to ones ideas ideals and dreams rather then institutional, or technological knowledge based on intricacies..
Abstract Narrative – a visual narrative derived from the interpretation of creations made up of intuitive actions manifesting as abstract shapes, forms and emotions. a process without preconceived plans just a thought and feeling following one after the other to become an idea.. changing directions as forms emerge to find an idea free from judgment, something true in and of itself. from this a world of personal myth, iconography, symbols and beings are created. observing these creations as they emerge as well as noting there transitions and final meaning one learns to understand what has been stated. through this understanding we see the synchronicity of moments and coincidence in life. a visual narrative where environment, being, and understanding all come from the interpretation of this visual diary. a story of potential, growth, and self destiny.
In the latest series of paintings by Portland-based artist Jesse Reno, shamanic beings struggle to find their place in a world simultaneously on the verge of expanding and collapsing. Totem animals and Native American figures reverberate memories of people who once lived as one with nature. Marked by symbols, these figures seek their dreams in the growth of trees and the passing of spirits. on a quest to find their true selves, they collect feathers and relics left by past encounters and past lives. They learn to transcend the boundaries of the rational world evolving into a collage of what they have become and encountered. In this body of work, Reno presents us with a journey leading inward to ultimately expand outward: “If you have moved wisely your dreams will still grow when you are gone.” -Jesse Reno
This is the story that tells itself to me, the weight of personal truth regardless of its outcome. My work acts for no reason other than to convey an inner struggle for expression. simple and direct. open for interpretation. always with purpose. words misspelled left out just like real thinking, the disconnected string of thoughts that guides the day. this is my expression. 200 times this year I have painted random layers of self introspection and visualization. expanding and growing through trial and error. the paintings thicken with purpose as time goes on with each new thought learned, and each layer created, confirmed, rethought, re identified, and tested until it is true or removed.
