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TJ Griffin: CONNECTION


Old Dallas Power & Light Building

Ro2 Art is thrilled to present CONNECTION by TJ Griffin, the artist's third solo exhibition with the gallery, featuring new works in various media, continuing narratives introduced in his recently published illustrated poetry edition, 'Existence.' The current work is influenced by Expressionism, Illustration, and contemporary figure painting. The exhibition takes place at The Ro2 Art POP-UP on the first floor of the historic Dallas Power & Light Building at 1508 Commerce Street, Downtown Dallas. CONNECTION is on view through February 10 with an Opening Reception taking place Saturday, January 20 from 7 to 10 p.m.

Emotions run deep through the eyes and expressions of his figures. With a striped nose symbolizing the metaphorical mask we wear in our everyday lives, the figures become portraits of our emotional state of mind. The colors are electric, painted with a loose brush and rendered with simplicity. His work has a push and pull of depth, with patterns moving in and out of figures into backgrounds. Through a combination of media including video painting presented on a massive 138-inch led video display, courtesy of Go-Vision, TJ Griffin creates an immersive environment to boldly open the curtains to a wild, yet welcoming world.

ARTIST STATEMENT:

My artwork is an examination of my imagination, given life from the most simplistic form of motion. My inspiration comes from my experiences in life. This current body of work is a continuation of my book Existence. Further exploring the ideas of life, love, death and psychology. Focusing on empathy, connection, and our lack of understanding of existence. As I make my way through the day I can’t help but feel the emotions of others. An expression in someone’s face, combined with the smell and sound of the winds blowing by, stick with me becoming more vivid and bright as it forms in my memory. This combination of senses is best expressed in the visual form. I see my characters as being from another world or parallel universe. Obscure proportions, big bold eyes and a stripe for a nose. They are not quite human, but still familiar. They are more than portraits of a person; they are portraits of feelings and emotions. They are the translation of my experiences filtered through my imagination. I use a stripe on the face as a metaphor for the psychological masks people wear everyday. I feel the masks we all wear inhibit connection and if we could remove these masks our connections would burn brighter. My focus is to grow and explore this universe that exists in my mind.

ABOUT THE ARTIST: 

About his process, TJ Griffin states, “Intention and chance collide to form my artwork. I enjoy painting in a process. I combine gestural impressionism with rendering of figuration . . . I like to capture an energy within the environment, a pulsing of connection. My style is very influenced by animation and illustration. Finding connections to the most simplistic forms to the most complex compositions, I reference elements from pre-civilization to modern man.

"Informed by the sophistication of style and narration of artists Gregory Crewdson, David Hockney and Takashi Murakami, I push to achieve a sincerity in story-telling like Crewdson, fused with the simplicity and composition of Hockney, with a pop surreal iconography not unlike Murakami’s."

Originally from Union City, Oklahoma, TJ Griffin moved to North Texas in 2004, where he competed a Masters in Fine Art from The University of Texas Dallas. Since arriving in Texas, Griffin has exhibited extensively including several important juried exhibitions and has won awards such as The Dallas Museum of Art’s DeGolyer Award and placing second in Rising Eyes of Texas. TJ Griffin is represented by Ro2 Art in Dallas.

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1508 Commerce Street · Dallas, TX 75201


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