James Jean: CLOWN

Tittle: Clown
Oil Painting on Board
16"x20"

This piece was painted in 2000 and it appears it was done so for personal satisfaction.  No commissions were found or reasons given.

James Jean was born in Taiwan and raised in New Jersey.In 2001 he graduated from the School of Visual Arts in New York. He is known for both his commercial work, fine art gallery work, and in the American comics industry as a cover artist for various books published by DC Comics, as well as for his work for Prada, ESPN and Atlantic Records. His work, which has been collected in numerous volumes, has been compared by The New York Times to that of Maxfield Parrish.

James Jeans states his design philosophy as "a concentration of aesthetics, virtuosity, profanity , and exploring the whole spectrum of visual communications" and stresses the importance of creating art that he is interested about.

This illustration depicts a strong sense of whimsey as two hybrid monkeys applaud a clown whose hat has levitated off of his head. The viewers eyes are locked within the composition and drawn to the expression of bewilderment upon the clowns face. The composition forms a strong triangle around the face of the clown to help achieve this effect.

Wonder, whimsey, oddities, and bizarre animals are just some of the hallmarks synonymous with the circus. James Jean's illustration of the Clown captures all of these elements and is why this piece has been chosen for our exhibit.

Posted By: Donald Nadziejko