Jules Anslow
Mediums: Lighting, Mosaics, Murals, Painting, Sculpture
Artist's Work
Artist's Bio
I arrived in the Northwest in 1985 from my home state of Ohio,and began working for established local ceramic jewelry artists before developing and selling my own jewelry and pottery. My sculptural pop-cartoon painting style in acrylic on wood has evolved steadily over the last twenty-five years, born of the possibilities I found in slab-rolled clay.
From multi-level cutout paintings and three-dimensional murals to concrete/glass mosaic public sculpture, I look for every opportunity to combine 2D and 3D for a larger-than-life effect. I created two of the pigs for Seattle's Pike Place Market “Pigs on Parade 2007”. I currently serve as Executive/Gallery Director for the studio/gallery I co-founded in 2006, Lowell Art Works in Everett, WA.
I was honored to be chosen 2010 Snohomish County Artist of the Year.
Local nostalgia, current focus, culture, future visions, humor, observational elements, icons sacred and/or profane; these concepts all inform my current work. My repertoire continues to diversify beyond wood with materials such as metal, glass mosaic, sculptural concrete, repurposed objects, and combinations thereof. I do enjoy the process of rejuvenating an established site with new art, indoors and out; that said, I also desire to expand into work more substantially integrated within a site. Broader, more simplified concepts are on my horizon as well.
On the practical side, my process begins with a meeting to become familiar with the commissioning body and its stakeholders. At this time we identify project goals, visions, unique elements, mission essence, and where appropriate, public input. Through this or subsequent communication we discuss site-specific conditions, safety considerations, longevity, material preferences, scheduling of progress updates, installation considerations, maintenance arrangements and other practical concerns. Research and immersion in this initial information then allow me to translate my perceptions into comprehensive images, targeting succinct nuggets to capture in the work. After conceptual fine-tuning, design approval and in-progress feedback, the completed work then becomes the visual ambassador for the organization, welcoming and familiarizing the audience with their mission on a visceral level.
After installation, ongoing correspondence allows me to monitor unforeseen condition changes and new concerns, and public interaction/feedback to inform my future endeavors. The growth I experience with each new project, each new medium used, and the solution of each new site-specific challenge serves to convince me that art can, and should, exist everywhere.
