Visual artists today are vast and equally fascinating all the way through. With the simplicity of broadcasting individual art out into the world, art is being viewed and consumed like never before. The connections and share-ability is unique in this visual medium. One such artist, Jacques Lizotte, is doing it well as an active participant in the aesthetic space. With his extensive attention using colorful detail and the explosive efforts of his pop-surreal artworks, he is a perfect example of someone constantly pushing the boundaries of the craft in 2017.
Art was simply a way for him to make it through the mundane. “I discovered that I need some type of creative outlet to fulfill my programming. My day job is basically editing photos for a publishing company, which you would think is creative, but removing pimples from Rachel Ray’s face or changing the color of bed sheets from baby blue to juniper green just doesn’t scratch that creative itch. I decided to buy some paint and brushes about two years ago and went to town. Ever since I started painting; when I see a really good piece of art I think about quitting and adopting some other creative thing I can pursue… I snap out of that pretty quickly and keep moving forward.”
With various pieces under his belt, Jacques picked out one that stood out in his mind. “[It would] probably be a recent piece called ‘Yolk.’ There’s no deep meaning or anything interesting behind it. I just really enjoyed looking at it, it has good color and balance.”
There is no one piece that offers a higher degree of difficulty. “At this point it seems like every piece gets more difficult. I keep challenging myself to create something better than the last. I’m still trying to find my own style that I can stick with and replicate… Right now I’m just having fun experimenting with different processes.”
Despite being an artist in the creative realm, his opinion on modern art remains grounded as a viewer. “I’m a bad person to ask being I’m a novice. Most of the art I view is through Instagram. I follow some of the best artists and some that are on the same level as me. When I’m in other cities I try to visit the local galleries and that’s about it for my art world. Once I started painting it’s made viewing art much more interesting… When I look at a painting I can’t help but to try and figure out the step by step process the artist took to get there.”
Visual art is not his only ambition. “I’m working on making a piece of exercise equipment called a ‘peg board’ to use in my workout routine. Instead of a plain wooden board with holes in it that you climb up. I was going to make one that looked like a golf course. You’ll start at the bottom of the board and work your way up avoiding sand traps and water. The peg hole at the top of the board will look like a putting green and in the middle will be a peg hole/cup. As I type this out it sounds ridiculous, but I’ve already purchased everything to make it. I’ll post a picture on Instagram when it’s done.”
His creative flow is intricate and allows for a process that works for him as best he can. “I’m constantly trying to think of new ways of doing things. Which probably hinders my productivity. I have so many ideas written in my phone. 85% of them are dumb ideas, 10% of them I don’t remember why I wrote it down, 5% I’ll use. I’m constantly walking around thinking about how can I use that in a painting or how can I paint with that. I thought about doing a series of paintings where I would paint fruits and vegetables, but I would use broccoli to paint a picture of broccoli or use a banana to paint a banana. Ha-ha, has this been done already?” This sounds like a new avenue of exploration that could prove worthwhile in the end!
Inspiration comes easy for this man. “[I love] David Choe, Doze Green, James Jean, Revok, Esao and Os Gemeos.” To keep himself busy, Jacques has been focussed on keeping his work steady in pairing with his personal world beyond such inspirations. “I’ve recently been trying to build daily routines in my life. If you don’t already have daily routines, I highly recommend you get some. Your brain will thank you for it. It’s Wednesday, and I’m at work right now. When I get off work I’ll run my dog, workout, cook dinner/lunch for tomorrow, and head upstairs to paint until about midnight. [I will be] trying to crank out enough paintings for the Valley Junction Art Festival on May 2nd.”
