My interest piqued by an email, I stopped by Art Star, which is mostly an arty little boutique in Northern Liberties, to see the work of Jason Sho Green, a young man originally from Seattle, who threw aside his degree in engineering after he started drawing and painting a couple of years ago. He has 23 small pieces hung on Art Star’s little art wall, and I was impressed by a number of things (left, “Rollerblader Haters,” pen, ink and colored pencil on board).First of all, there was a clear seriousness of purpose. The media, mostly drawings, with a couple of acrylic on board, some silkscreen, and some sewn-on layers, struck me as beyond mere cartooning.
Second, I liked the point of view. Green is a sharp observer of the human comedy and the strata and tribes within our society–especially the society of 20-somethings (right, “We Built This City,” mixed media on wood).
Third, I liked the drawing.
Fourth, I liked the jokes and the modest, but not exactly self-deprecating, humor.
And finally, I liked the way Green solved problems in a rather fearless way, stacking two drawings to make one, breaking the edge here or there, or going beyond the basic inked cartoons and using other media, like acrylic and thread. Not a bad product for two years’ effort.
So I’m planning to keep an eye out for more work.
