In Mark Warren Jacques' upcoming exhibition opening this January 2017, the artist explores a new narrative, calling it Man's Ruin. While maintaining the complex, geometric abstractions that are representative of his signature style, the new series of paintings depict sex, drugs and power, the vices tempting to man.
Mark Warren Jacques
"Power"
acrylic on canvas
As our pal Howard Hurst wrote, "It is easy to see their relationship to the occult geometries of Charmion Von Wygond, or the tumultuous, semi textual abstractions of American Modernist Stuart Davis. Panes of iridescent color collide, warp into explosions of delicate line, and trapes across fields of color. Anthropomorphic shapes seem to convey a helter skelter optimism that allows one to feel the sublime in little idiosyncratic bursts. It is easy to recognize this same potent strand of whimsy one finds while staring at the humbling scale of a desert landscape. Jacques’ great strength is his ability to shift that gaze into a knowing wink. His paintings become like personal talismans. Similar to the symbols painted so commonly on Amish barns in his native Ohio they convey a homegrown kind of magic."
Mark Warren Jacques
“Two Beautiful Booties”
acrylic on canvas
Mark Warren Jacques
“All Night Every Day” installation