Artists Theo Wujcik and Jay Giroux have joined creative forces to bring the next exhibit to St. Petersburg’s newest up and coming gallery, NOVA 535. Theo Wucjik and Jay Giroux: New Paintings and Installations will open on May 3rd at 7:00pm and run through the end of the month.
This unexpected marriage of old-guard and new finds perfect housing in NOVA 535’s exquisitely appointed interior’s blend of classic and modern design features. 18-ft hand- cut rafters from 1920 provide their own artist ceiling for Wujcik’s latest endeavors, a series of large-scale paintings inspired by two very distinct modern phenomena: the aesthetic force of the Asian Invasion and the undeniable impact of global warming… in no particular order. New works won’t be outdone, however; NOVA’s ample wall space will play host to a collection of Theo’s older works selected specifically for this exhibit.
Older may be wiser, but not necessarily as adventurous… Jay Giroux, the obvious heir to Wujcik’s throne as avant-garde Tampa Bay pioneer, will debut a series of original works alongside the grand master. In Giroux’s own words, the series encapsulates an aesthetic gleaned from his mentor: Theo says it best for me… haphazard, rigorous, physical and exuberant are all fine guidelines for painting. Adding and subtracting spontaneously from his canvases, creating pieces that acknowledge the interconnectedness of seemingly unlike things, New Paintings and Installations is the too long awaited unveiling of Giroux’s new body of work.
Jay Giroux
With a background firmly rooted in skate and street culture, Jay Giroux has developed a creative process and product which reflects his desire to connect the disparate aspects of the pop continuum: music, skateboarding, fashion and club culture, to a fine art aesthetic informed by the relation of form and function, and theory and practice. His work is characterized by the goal of inviting individual interpretation, and using a work of art as not a final object but the opening of a dynamic dialogue.
Giroux’ pieces juxtapose several techniques and concepts developed over years of experimentation, both in an academic setting and in subsequent independent studio time. His preferred mediums range from drawing, painting, and sculpture to screen-printing, electronic media, photography and performance.
The creative process starts with a gathering of content and ideas from research, experimentation in sketchbooks (a constant companion), found elements from the street, and personal photographs. He then uses Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator, as well as pen and paper, to collage these materials in color and composition tests. The goal of his process is not to predetermine the final piece, however, it is to set the stage for the creative performance that takes place in the studio, where all bets are off and spontaneity reigns.
Working on a final piece, Giroux overlays as many techniques and mediums as possible. Rather than treating the canvas as a precious artifact, he abuses the surface through physical distress: pushing and pulling, scraping and sanding and at times, painting or washing over the entire surface. Nothing is permanent until the final moment when he knows the piece is complete.
Background
Born 1979, Burlington, VT. Lives and works in Tampa, FL
Theo Wujcik
For my joint show with Jay Giroux at NOVA 535, the concept of ideation, has been the creative springboard for my new works. Ideation may come by mail, be found in the streets or pulled out of thin air, but it is surley linked to what already exists in the brain’s vast experiainces. Making these connections is what I find most exhilarating. Transforming that into visual expression is paramount.
Always looking to broaden my range in dealing with both subject and content, I enlist an array of conceptual styles, which remain in a state of flux. The dialoge of interest today may be superseded by a more pressing issue tomorrow and I’m very keen on following this non scripted procedure.
Background
My first week of art school in 1958 was no different than the final week of November 2004. I knew that I had found my true calling then and my future looks as bright as ever now.
Upon retirement from teaching at the University of South Florida after the summer of 2003, I was no freer than I had been my entire career as an artist. Over the years my work ethic and self-discipline carried the day under any circumstance.
There are four major phases of my career. From 1968 through 1980, I worked exclusively with intaglio, lithography and silverpoint drawing. The subject of my work during this period was other artists; some that I had printed for, others that I knew and admired. The content of this work was the collaborative process.
A divorce in 1979 led to a serious lifestyle change. I became immersed in the punk music scene (1980-1984) which included the formation of an alternative visual arts group, “Mododado”. Most viewed my work of this period as a radical shift, while a few got it right. The subject of my work changed, but the content was still founded on collaboration, now between artist/musicians and fellow hard core punkers.
I focused exclusively on painting as a solo artist. The innovative use of a chain link fence motif became my signature style (1984-1990) and again, in a deconstructive phase (1993-2002).
A dear friend, James Rosenquist, curated my 30-Year Retrospective Exhibition: 1970-2000, for the Gulfcoast Museum of Art, Largo, FL 2000. This exhibition traveled to the Lowe Art Museum, Coral Gables, FL 2001 and to the Polk Museum of Art, Lakeland, FL 2002. Public lenders to the exhibition included the Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, MI, Carnegie Institute Museum of Art, Pittsburgh, PA, Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, CT and the J.B. Speed Museum, Louisville, KY.
All three phases of my career up to that point, are well illustrated in the exhibition catalogue, which was funded by grants from the Elizabeth Firestone Graham Foundation, Richard Florsheim Art Fund and the University of South Florida Publications Council.
My formative years (1958-1962) at the Center for Creative Studies, Detroit, MI, included a full scholarship after my first year of study, and culminated with a diploma. My major was painting, with a minor in printmaking. At no time during my studies did teaching ever occur to me. However, I was appointed to a teaching position at CCA (1962-1970). In 1964-65, a Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation Award – Graphics, enhanced my printmaking research. In 1967, a Ford Foundation Grant to train as a master printer at the Tamarind Lithography Workshop, Los Angeles, CA, presented me with an alternative to teaching.
The collaborative process between artist/artisan was a unique experience for me. I soon made it my objective to elevate the collaborative effort to that of artist/artist. This was made possible with the collaborative support of Billy Al Bengston, Edward Ruscha and Ed Moses.
In 1968 I was picked up by the Brooke Alexander Gallery, New York, NY, as a hot new prospect. Then in 1970, I accepted a shop manager position at the University of South Florida's print atelier, Graphicstudio. Over the course of two years, I printed editions for James Rosenquist, Edward Ruscha, Richard Anuszkiewicz and Nicholas Krushenick. I was appointed to the USF faculty in 1972.
During my tenure, I was awarded three USF research grants (1998, 1993, 1985); a National Endowment of the Arts Grant – Graphics (1977-78); Individual Artist Fellowships, Florida Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs (1996-97 and 2001-02); and an NEA Grant through First Night International (1999-2000).
My career has been shaped by being a forward looking practitioner and by fateful decisions that in retrospect revealed their true significance. I remarried in 1991 and our daughter was born in September 1993. We divorced in November 2003 and now share in equal custody of our eleven year old daughter. As fate would have it, marriage, birth, separation and divorce have all been positive life experiences. My focus now is shared between two daughters from my previous marriage (1962-1979), my five year old grandson, my youngest daughter and my work. Parenting and painting, that's what I live for.
