As one of few Black kids in his Indiana high school, Julian Jamaal Jones remembers feeling anxious and isolated. His only escape was a hip-hop show called “106 & Park.” Streamed on BET, the television program exposed Jones to Lil’ Kim, Missy Elliott, Crime Mob, and other Black artists. “I witnessed people who looked like me,” Jones shares in his artist’s statement. Today, he incorporates aspects of hip-hop culture into his “colorful, abstract, gestural, and ultimately unexplainable” quilts and drawings. This spring, his work will be on display in the Showcase Gallery at Blue Spiral 1 as part of Color in Motion, a group exhibition exploring the vibrancy of colors and forms. Running concurrently in the Main Level Gallery, W.O.W.: Wood Invitational will feature more than 20 contemporary wood artists working with common and exotic species. According to Blue Spiral, the mnemonic stands for “Wood Only Work.” But it also implies that the show is “meant to impress.” Also meant to impress is Works on Paper, a group show in the Lower Level Gallery that will “highlight the potential of paper and the variety of mediums that can occupy the surface.” Lastly, in the Small Format Gallery, Burnsville-based creative Christopher Kerr-Ayer will display glass objects that balance both antique and contemporary aesthetics.
All Shows: March 1-April 24; Opening Reception: Friday, March 1, 5-7pm
Blue Spiral 1 Fine Art + Craft / 38 Biltmore Ave., Asheville