Rise from the Gutter |
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| John John Jesse | |||
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I love art that when you see it, you can instantly tell it reflects who the artist is in some way. Like maybe it tells their story or maybe a part of them is in every piece. It’s basically what I do, because my life and experiences is the one thing I know everything about, more or less. I lived through it all; being raised in the then ghetto drug-ridden Lower East Side of New York City in the 70s and 80s. That was before all the lame sushi bars, cafes and drunken frat boys pissing on your stoop, claiming that this is their neighbourhood. Man, I’d like to shoot one of them! Back to the story, sorry, in 1984 I dropped out of high school and formed Nausea, a loud fast anarcho-punk rock squatter band and never looked back. With an equal dose of punk rock, class war politics, heroin addiction, alcoholism, stealing, sex, heartbreak, fighting, squatting and pan-handling I’ve gotten to live through it all in my book. If I were a gifted writer maybe my forum would be a series of novels or a crazy drug tale like Kerouac or something, but I’m not. All I can present are beautiful, colorful visual descriptions of a somewhat dark, dirty and decadent adventure. Being clean, off narcotics and booze, for a little over six years has given me the clarity to paint my punk rock history with honesty and integrity. No, I have no regrets; I did do it my way. Sometimes the work seems dark and sometimes not but the conclusion is always victory. |
Rise from the Gutter – John John Jesse
Date posted: July 27, 2006
Author: jolanta
I love art that when you see it, you can instantly tell it reflects who the artist is in some way. Like maybe it tells their story or maybe a part of them is in every piece. It’s basically what I do, because my life and experiences is the one thing I know everything about, more or less.
