Eldorado
Acrylic Collage on Masonite

V. Mann

Jason V. Mann's acrylic collage paintings are a documentation of his attempt to express himself and his attitude, his joy and appreciation, his relationship to the past and others, and his purpose. Mann's paintings are landscapes for the viewer to enter and explore, decoding the meanings behind combinations of clippings and colors, challenging them to understand the association between juxtaposed elements and phrases. He is motivated by the challenge of defining areas of vast space, and the struggle to express his most inner thoughts and ideas to the viewer.

Mann collects printed materials gathered over a lifetime by himself and others; a newspaper clipping from the Moon Landing his grandmother saved, a flyer from a show he saw in Toronto, or a ticket stub from a movie with someone he loved. Materials layered like paint through a collage technique he has been developing over the years using acrylic paint and a variety of stains, glazes, and pigments made from dirt and ash on masonite canvases, or parts of barns and houses. These materials were taken from an old family farm on Gumlick Road in Roanoke, Kentucky, the objects Mann has found there, the buildings, and the land itself have provided a great deal of inspiration to him. Trying to understand how this land and the lives of his ancestors has created the person he is today and working on the same ground as his fathers is very important to him.