CH.89: If you were to categorize or describe the style of your artwork, what would it be and why?
AJ: I guess I’m a painter as I primarily use paint, but the construction of the work feels much more sculptural. The works are less painted and more assembled.
CH.89: Where do you draw your inspiration from?
AJ: I have fairly rigid systems in my approach to making work, but the text I use can start from anywhere, songs, conversations, or books I’m reading.
CH.89: Can you talk a little bit about what your creative thought process is like when starting a new project/ piece of artwork?
AJ: I have the parameters that I work with, those being the use of blocks of text and the blue frames. The text is always in the same custom font and always follows the rule of however many letters there are in a given word, that’s how many words will be used to create the form of text. The blue frames follow the way we read which is horizontally and vertically so they are always formed in that manner. Bodies of work are isolated explorations of these parameters that often retrospectively connect after time.
CH.89: Is there anything in particular that you would want people to take from your artwork?
AJ: People can take it as they see fit, but we are preconditioned to read language and form images. The bodies of text in my work are not there to communicate they are a mass within a given space using the rules of language to construct their form. I find it interesting that people always try to understand the work through the language rather than the form.
CH.89: Can you talk a little bit about your lifestyle as an artist and what that is like?
AJ: It’s a liberating existence, you are your own boss and mostly answer to just your own intuition and criticism. You do need to be proactive and keep working, even if you feel something isn’t working, see it through and keep it, and let it sit for some time as it may become something later on.
CH.89: What is one major lesson you’ve learned as an artist thus far?
AJ: Stay busy, momentum is key.
CH.89: Do you regard personal style & taste to be of highest importance?
AJ: Your style and tastes are what make your work yours, so your own tastes are key in your own work. Don’t ever make work just to appease other people.
CH.89: What do you consider to be the hardest thing about being an artist?
AJ: Finding ways to be seen, there are so many people out there all trying to be seen, finding ways to get heard can be hard.
CH.89: What is one thing you love about being an artist?
AJ: Making work, having an idea, and placing it in the world.
CH.89: Is there anyone in particular, any artist’s that inspire you in any way?
AJ: Ed Rusha, just for being the coolest cat around.
CH.89: What do you think of technology in terms of being a useful tool for artists today?
AJ: It gives you more options, I don’t think it’s a good or a bad thing, it’s just another tool. It’s always down to how the artist uses it.
CH.89: Do you think being an artist allows you to view the world differently from those who don’t follow creative paths?
AJ: Everyone can enrich their lives in different ways, I don’t think it’s right to say we as artists somehow see things other people don’t and that elevates us. Being an artist has certainly enriched my life, I feel privileged that I can take pleasure in looking at and understanding images.
CH.89: Do you enjoy traveling? If so, do you have a favorite city?
AJ: Reykjavik has been my favorite city.
CH.89: Do you have a favorite author or book?
AJ: Moby Dick
CH.89: Any future goals or plans for your artwork?
AJ: I’m bringing subtle variations into the systems I use, some new uses of color. But I would like to make more of the sculptural blue frameworks.
CH.89: What does being an artist mean to you?
AJ: Making things.
CH.89: What’s the last song you listened to?
AJ: Front Toward Enemy by Incendiary
CH.89: Any last words on the aesthetic of your artwork?
AJ: It’s not what words say, it’s how they sit.
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