Me, Myself & I

Jesse Johnson art exhibit

Marshall J. Gardner Center For The Arts

Visitors will be able to experience the growth in Jesse’s work during the period 2009 to 2017. He endeavors to allow his work to speak for him as he shares his experiences with us through oil and acrylic paintings, sculptures, ceramic pieces and photographs.

The exhibit hours are Fridays and Saturdays 6-9pm and Sundays 1-4pm July 21 – 30. It is free and open to the public – all are welcome!

A glimpse into Jesse Johnson’s world

By utilizing visual elements such as colorful forms and abstract structures, my work deeply engages the viewer. These visual elements and colors help to tell an ongoing story. Each body of work is a chapter in that story. My work challenges the marginalization of African Americans and illustrates the ways in which minorities are often mistreated. This body of work is produced to help expand consciousness about our history, from past to present.

My creativity in other works establishes meaningful political agendas, as well as obscures the abstract human form. Using foreign objects to create texture produces aesthetics to evoke a variety of emotions for my mixed media conceptions.

In a previous collection, I used female mannequins to demonstrate the objectification of women in American society. Through this body of work I want the viewer to see such issues from my perspective. Some of my work includes mixed media such as: oil, acrylics, sand, puzzle pieces, record albums, mannequins, photography, ceramics, and sculpting.

This provides me with the main departure point for my paintings and other creations. My identity is also woven into my works. As a result of my childhood experiences growing up in Chicago, I feel very passionately about these issues; by creating specific imagery, I aim to make the viewer question them. There is no specific theme for this exhibition, I only want the audience to take in each piece as a moment of experience when presented.

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“Me, Myself & I” is part of our Exhibits series.

Upcoming events

April

5th
Allison Svoboda Confluence: Nature as Medium
25th
Life Drawing Open Studio
26th
All in Jest Trivia With Josh Gamble

May

5th
Artist’s talk by Allison Svoboda
5th
Mudballs Workshop by Allison Svoboda

June

7th
Sue Reyman & Ginny Takacs Floral photography and paintings

July

19th
Rashelle Roos & Joe Agati Paintings and sculpture

August

30th
Cydney Lewis & Art Garcia Collage and paintings

October

11th
Felix Maldonado Selected paintings

November

15th
Gallery break Our gallery will be closed in late January while we prepare for our 2024 community show.

December

6th
2024 Community Show Artists from Gary, Connected to Gary, that have not been exhibited in our gallery
View past events

Miller Beach Arts & Creative District

Mailing address:

P.O. Box 2405, Gary, IN 46403
219-885-9114
MBACDarts@gmail.com

Gallery Location:

Marshall J. Gardner Center for the Arts
540 S. Lake Street, Gary, IN 46403
Open Friday and Saturday, 6—8pm, and Sunday 2—4. Find us on , , and Instagram.