SLABS
Jason A. Cina
As a painter Jason works unwittingly opposite against a crisp photographic viewpoint resulting in reactionary arrays of color and reliance on rudimentary forms; elemental materials weathered and decayed outlined with an artificial vibrancy.
Jason’s method is improvisational with little forethought to conclusion rather riding a wave of openness during each stage of fabrication. Surface preparation is somewhat ceremonial as he randomly gouges out trenches or divots replacing the removed material with a plaster based amalgam. Once hardened, that too becomes eroded and painted. The remaining flat wooden planes are painted or stained similarly then sequentially sealed, masked and painted over in floating repetitious layers of playful dominant conglomerations of color.
Someone described Jason’s work as “epidermal landscapes” for there certainly is liveliness to these seemingly microscopic slices of larger biological or molecular structures. The series entitled SLABS consists of ten uniformed sized paintings plus one larger prequel bridging the evolutionary gap. Numbers seven and eight morphed from pure abstraction into something floral like whereas nine and ten became erratic post parenthood. Current paintings are refined: smaller, manageable with new pieces produced during long term residencies granted by Topaz Arts and, at present, Bliss on Bliss Studios, both in western Queens.
About Jason A. Cina
Jason grew up in NYC on Roosevelt Island and has lived in nearby Queens since the late 1990’s. His field of study was in stage design but after years of lighting plays in the trenches of Off Broadway Jason cared more for his 35mm stills and picked up from promising work begun in his teens.
The subsequent decade produced an esteemed portfolio which took Jason on several adventures across America accompanied by actors or jazz musicians pushing his point of view towards candid and street portraiture.
On the flip side, Jason’s painting skills were kept sharp as he regularly freelanced as a scenic artist Off Broadway in addition to filling up many a sketch book while idle in hotels and airports.
Back home, Jason taught art and photography for a handful of scholastic institutions including the founding of the photography program at The Harlem Children’s Zone. Later on he developed a studio art and photography curricula for adults with developmental disabilities taking place in facilities city wide.
One location in particular was conveniently around the corner from his apartment; and, with ample space allotted to the program, Jason covertly set up shop during off hours commencing a series of paintings based on materials found in-house.
The years that followed produced Jason’s first cohesive series of ten large recycled wood panels entitled SLABS with several smaller pieces recently added to the inventory thanks to long term residencies granted by Topaz Arts and Bliss on Bliss Studios both located in western Queens.
Since first presenting the series as a solo exhibition in 2013 the work has been showing regularly in commercial and collective galleries in Chelsea, Long Island City, Brooklyn and the Lower East Side.
For more information, please contact Jason at info@jasonacina.com, visit his website at jasonacina.com or follow him on facebook.
