Artist statement

VIDEO CREATED BY:  ALIA ALHAMMOUD and group

'Big City Living' painting series
I am captivated by the vibrant energy that exists in the unique space & culture of the inner city.  Here, diverse elements of nature and man are magnified into an intense symphony of colour, texture, light and form.  Senses of sound and smell are merged, and the eye and mind is provoked.

Since 2003 I have been capturing this dense urban symphony through my artwork.  I research extensively, seeking out intersections where such elements are vividly alive. This has taken me into the colour and movement of New York City, to the flowing expanses of blues and greens in the City of Vancouver.  In the City of Calgary my paintings replicate a sense of space framed by contrasting man engineered skyscrapers and the natural flow of fresh clean rivers.  In Mexico City an intense menagerie of senses and life is captured as I create my works.

'Small Town Living' painting series
There are times in our lives, wherein each of us experience a sense of what came before.  This connection between that which is gone, and that which is here & now, is at the heart of this series of paintings “Small Town Living”.
In my time as an artist working in large cities such as Calgary & Mexico City, and in small Alberta towns like Drumheller, Munson & East Coulee, I have observed a distinctive difference:  Within small towns there is a slower erosion and deeper appreciation of the past.
This is incredibly evident in the town of Drumheller, for here, there is unique tangible consciousness of the town’s history.  Here there exists a robust collective respect for what came before.  Here, I feel a peace and a sense of belonging to something much greater than myself.  Here, I am part of something long gone, but very much alive.
I have spent time with many people in the Drumheller Valley.  I’ve been utterly captivated by stories of old, I have walked the long dusty roads, explored crumbling buildings and I have been touched by the inherent deep value of a collective heart.  In this series of works, I have used artistic techniques similar to those I used in my Big City Series of 2014.  Collected photo transfers, collage, ink and paint combine into a series of works, each one a homage to that which came before, and yet, remains alive in the small towns of the Drumheller Valley.

My paintings - collages of paint, photos, fabric, resins and other artist materials - are the end result of my desire to seek and artfully capture for others, this distinctive, diverse and vibrant energy of each place that has influence over me.

Biography

Jake Joy has explored the world around her with many different mediums including printmaking, linocuts, weaving, silkscreening, natural dyeing, large scale surrealist paintings, collage and mixed media painting. At the heart of all her work, is a feel of looseness and expressive energy. Her work has a combination of line and colour that is always vibrant.

Jake started taking drawing and painting classes at age 12. As a young adult, she volunteered in art galleries and started her studies of Fine Art at the University of Alberta. Following U of A, she studied at Emily Carr and finally with Alberta University of the Arts (formally ACAD). Her paintings are included in numerous corporate and private collections, including ATB, CMLC (Calgary municipal land corporation), Tonko, ACAD, and the City of Calgary.

She has been exhibiting her work professionally since 2008 in both group and solo shows in galleries and artist run spaces in Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver.  She continues to work on her practice with mixed media, including resin and wax with her paintings. She has plans to show her work in New York in the not so distant future!

TO CREATE 
by Jakejoy Mulyk
​
TO be at the
'root of the urge to create',
once this ground work is established, something deep within relaxes,
the real life-transforming work can begin,
your catalyst into the creative process
opens the space for you to paint,
show how readily available your creative is,
clear the ground - challenge self-imposed barriers to creativity,
a hidden wave of passion lies just below the surface,
a passion yearning to be liberated.

Destroy the binding you have attached to the idea of creation.