• ART IS SETTING YOURSELF FREE TO SEE BEYOND YOUR SOUL.

Jimmy K

Born: Springfield, Ohio 1968

Jimmy K was just a baby; less than two weeks old and not wearing a seat-belt when the Volkswagen Bug smashed into a van. His body slammed into and then shattered the front windshield. He fractured his newborn skull and snapped pliable bones. “I came into the world with a bang…and life itself has proven equally shocking.” He jests.

Jimmy began his matriculation into the fine arts as the occasional class-room artist, but preferred drawing, sketching and plucking his electric guitar to the riggers of the small-town, Catholic elementary school system. He spent many hours occupying a special desk in the principle’s office for his “lack of focus” and was known for making large, figurative drawings on the inside of friends closet doors; appreciated by peers but less so by parents.

Education:

He obtained his Bachelor of Arts Degree from Arizona State University, working his way through school as a professional musician. This allowed him to travel. He once found himself performing before Mother Teresa.

Part of his time in college was devoted to the theatrical arts and he was cast in some Los Angeles productions passing through Arizona. This allowed Jimmy to become a member of the Screen Actors Guild-SAG-AFTRA.

Upon graduating Jimmy married a professional dancer/aspiring ballerina/Cardinals Cheerleader.

Los Angeles, Ca

After a year, Jimmy’s relationship ended in divorce. While navigating through a tough breakup, he moved to LA where he had the opportunity to record with Gary Malabar, the legendary drummer for Van Morrison, Bruce Springsteen and The Steve Miller band. Jimmy’s songs were noticed by DreamWorks and he received a production contract from the office of entertainment attorney, Alan Mintz –  Michael Jackson, Nirvana etc. But Jimmy’s production deal fell through the cracks of the “Brittany Spears era” of pop music that began to dominate the airwaves.

Paris, France

Free of contractual obligations, Jimmy sold everything but a change of clothes and his acoustic guitar and moved to Paris, France. He moved in with his girlfriend who had a tiny flat in the 10th.

In Paris he gained a local following and played in bars, theaters and on the streets of Montmartre. He wrote with a Major Label French singer and composed/sang on a dance song that was pressed to vinyl and spun by DJs in Parisian clubs. He met with EMI International about his own songs. But he struggled with success and his savings were suddenly depleted. Little did he know that he would enter a time of self-awareness that would leave him feeling like stranger in a foreign land. This catharsis/self-examination could only be born from a complete separation from culture, religion and family. During this ‘separation’  Jimmy would be re-introduced to his childhood muse: making physical art. He created some pieces from construction material found on the side of Parisian streets. He would eventually learn french, just in time for the surprising news that his girlfriend was pregnant.

Orange County, Ca

After three years in France, Jimmy moved back to California with his girlfriend and their baby son. The period of introspection continued in California, fueled by reverse culture shock and the realization that he had lost connection with family and friends. Jimmy grew his hair long and began working with the world of severe autismin a music therapy capacity and as an artist. “I felt a connection to these amazing people who were diagnosed as “non-verbal”. This work inspired more writing, composing and creating.Then, around the time that his five year old niece passed away, Jimmy embarked on a particularly prolific time of painting. “I suddenly had to paint”. Jimmy began painting on any flat surface he could find, churning out a massive amount of work, including a series of almost 40 figurative abstract portraits on large mesonite panel. When he ran out of canvases, he would troll through dumpsters to find unique surfaces to paint on or frames to use. He calls this series “A Period of Painting”. The work loosely     centers on themes of compassion and empathy and a “dissection of the sometimes vile nature of human beings”.

“For me, the ugly and the pitiful have become beautiful..I’m painting my newfound fascination with what I call the “magic of the banal”.

Jimmy became a fixture in the Santa Ana art scene, exhibiting his paintings and performing music at gallery shows.

He has since sold pieces to private collectors all over the country. His energetic figures and lines have been exhibited in galleries in downtown Los Angeles (Gallery Row) including Gloria Delson Contemporary Arts Gallery. He has done various “pop up” exhibitions of his art in Hollywood and was recently accepted into the Laguna Art Group by jury process (Panel of Gallery Directors).

Jimmy has also been a ‘regular’ medical staff on CBS series “Code Black” season one and season two.

He continues to paint, compose and create every day from his home in Orange County and is currently working on art shows in LA and in Brooklyn, NY.

https://aperiodofpainting.wordpress.com/