King Kong hovers over a dilapidated structure as a woman bathes under an image of two people singing at a piano. Sounds a bit discombobulated right? If you answered yes, then you have played into the theme of local artist Jay Wilkinson’s latest solo exhibition title “Free Dirt” perfectly. This new seven painting offering will be on display at the Bale Creek Allen Gallery until August 28. The image described above is meant to explore human memory and how it is a deceptive yet foundational part to the development of our personalities.
Jay Wilkinson
“This was my first solo show since 2019,” Wilkinson says during a phone interview. If Wilkinson’s name sounds familiar, it’s because he’s the founder of the Bobby on Drums art collective and gallery, cofounder of Art Tooth, and former owner and operator of Dang Good Candy a studio/gallery in Sundance Square. Since then, Wilkinson hasn’t done a solo exhibition, an endeavor he says he enjoys immensely.
With “Free Dirt” Wilkinson says he been rejuvenated since he’s back to making art for arts’ sake.
“It was cool. It was just this little seven painting show that kind of marks me making my own work again after taking a bit of a hiatus.”
The hiatus Wilkinson is referring are the years he spent working with other artists at Dang Good Candy or doing a slew of commissioned work with a preconceived theme in mind. “During the time I was down there, I didn’t complete a lot of original work,” he says. “Dang Good Candy was so much more about the community and helping out other artists.”
It was during this era of his career that Wilkinson says he suffered from a bit of a creative block when it came to finding ideas for original work. “With sort of the help of Bale and my wife, I was able to bust through that block," he says.
Not wanting to waste any time with his new muse, Wilkinson says he’s been on a creative high ever since.
With his new solo show, Wilkinson says his art is more about the disjointed way that memory constructs people’s personalities. “For that reason, I created these more collaged images,” he says.
Jay Wilkinson
The images themselves were created from a mixture of oil-based paint and a few photographs Wilkinson says he took during his travels. “I used things that sparked my interest or even things I thought were funny and these really deep moments of sadness,” he says. “I think it’s interesting how all of these things kind of tie together to kind of build the structure of a person. After all, it’s our memories that construct our personalities.”
Outside of the discipline of this idea, Wilkinson says he also used this opportunity to experiment with paint and other media that he’s been aching to work with for years.
“I feel like, as an artist, I kind of like opening up more in a way where I’m trying to let my brain naturally take me to places instead of feeling like I need to execute an image with single narrative and one single opinion,” he says. “I just wanted these pieces to be more freeform and fun.”
As for future plans, Wilkinson says he will be doing an artist residency with Tarrant County College. “I will be doing days there, just kind of painting with students and then I’ll have a show at the end of my time with them.”
Wilkinson will also be busy as the current manager at the Fort Works Art Gallery.
“I still have several other exhibit ideas that I want to work on that are not totally solidified yet, but probably some work in the DFW are and other parts of Texas … maybe across the country,” Wilkinson says. “[I’m] just looking to continue doing new works.”
