JESSE SMALL

DISTANT SIGNALS

December 14, 2023 - January 27, 2024

IN THE NEWS

Jesse Small - DISTANT SIGNALS

The exhibition will feature Small’s newest series of work, featuring layers of pierced metal screens which create a three-dimensional relief on the wall. The layers are well spaced to allow light to diffuse through the sculpture and generate shadows below.

The artist writes of these new wall sculptures, “The layered patterns come from drawings I have been working on for the past 15 years, right up until today. Compiled from hundreds of drawings observing nature: the accidental shadow of a branch, the natural structures on Spanish moss, kelp, erosion. The pieces are an open experiment into how information and story precipitates out of patterns and colors. These pieces are an exploration of the sculptural relief format, the efficient use of space inherent in a combination of materials and illusion. Being truly abstract, the story is open-ended so there is room for the viewer’s imagination to step in.”

While Small’s work is sculptural in nature, using many forms and mediums, he is a superb colorist, tracing back to his early days as a spray paint muralist. In each of his new works he finds an opportunity to explore a wide range of palette from brilliant fuchsia juxtaposed with orange and silver grey to florescent yellow, green and red. The layers are often stacked as a gradient that invokes illusion and shaded depth. Inner layers flash their colors, appearing and hiding behind foreground layers as the viewer shifts position.

The tondos offer the viewer a simultaneous bolt of energy as both sculpture and painting. They make efficient use of their space, much like traditional relief sculpture tries to maximize a flat space with limited three-dimensional forms, a mix of real depth and implied depth. After many decades of exploring sculpture in the round, monumental, and hanging sculptures, Small has turned his efforts towards a new format of wall relief, exploring the history and future uses of that real and implied space.

About the Artist

Jesse Small grew up in Santa Monica, California. During high school he participated in student government, California Boys State, Kids City, Student Conservation Association, and a variety of environmental projects. As an active graffiti artist during those formative years, Small focused on murals and photography. At 17 he moved to the Midwest to earn a B.F.A. from the Kansas City Art Institute. Initially he would pursue a major in photojournalism, but changed to sculpture after being exposed to the department.

Finishing a dual major in Sculpture and Ceramics from KCAI in 1997, Small maintained a studio in Kansas City for several years, creating exhibitions, curated shows, and public art for several Midwest cities, including Kansas City. During this time, Small’s focus was on designing and creating Public Art projects. Several notable projects came out of this period (see Shadow and Daum Museum 2003 or Checkpoint at Ave Arts KC 2000).

In 2005, Small earned an M.F.A. from Alfred University and began and 6 month Ceramic Sculpture residency program in Jingdezhen, China at PWS. Small was invited there as a Visitor Scholar, as the PWS was connected to the local universities for academic exchange. This allowed Small to obtain a one year Visiting Scholar Visa. Small’s time in Jingdezhen was very formative. His Visiting Scholar trip was extended to a 6 month residency in Shenzhen, meeting with local governments and developing public art plans. Overall, during this and subsequent trips, Small launched several solo and group exhibitions in Shenzhen, Shanghai, Beijing, Hong Kong, Jingdezhen, and Chong Qing, focusing on both metal and ceramic sculpture. Until 2013, he maintained a ceramic studio in Jingdezhen and a metal studio in Shenzhen, China.

Since 2013, Small has been a resident artist at Angels Gate Cultural Center in San Pedro, California. Set upon the backdrop of Los Angeles Harbor and the Pacific Ocean, Angels Gate Cultural Center is a nonprofit facility that provides subsidized studios to local artists. During the past decade at AGCC, Small has continued to produce public art, corporate and private sculpture commissions. As a resident at AGCC, he also performs many community welding classes and open studio events. Being in Los Angeles and part of the AGCC community continues to inform Small as he evolves as an artist and teacher.