XO
Because Jim Klein’s abstracts are so influenced by what is happening in the moment, even when he thinks he has something specific in mind, he can surprise himself. Giving in to the artistic process and the immediacy of creation is a large part of the joy – and possibly the frustration – of being an artist.
One painting, XO, which Jim created in the Art Factory, began as an attempt to paint an abstract crow, but perhaps is more evocative of a human figure. It sold quickly, and Jim was motivated to explore what else he could create with similar lines and color. That exploration resulted in The Healer.
Over Easy (48×36)
While creating The Healer, Jim was reminded of a wooden statue that was carved by a dear friend. The carving depicted a Native American during the fur trapper days. “There is a very specific face incorporated into the piece,” he recalls. The painting came from a connection Jim felt in the moment to that Native American spirit, but not the carving itself. The idea isn’t to recreate an image, but to capture the energy or the essence of what inspires the painting in the first place, and then present it as something new. “The lines don’t correlate to the carving,” he says. “In fact, some people say it reminds them of a sport.”
Over Easy is Jim’s third painting in what could loosely be considered a series. Perhaps the most intriguing of the three, Over Easy begs the question: What happens when you break the shell? The title implies that the subject is an egg heading for a frying pan, but it could be seen more broadly as a metaphor for anything that appears one way on the outside and another way on the inside. When we let our guard done by allowing cracks in that hard outer layer, we are vulnerable, but we also open ourselves up to possibility. When we crack the shell, and embrace the truth of what is beneath it, that’s when transformation happens.
“We all interpret abstract art differently,” Jim says, acknowledging that the viewer brings his or her own inspiration in a given moment to each painting. In this way, the artist accepts his own vulnerability because doing so allows the process of creation to continue — long after the painting is complete.