Jared Seff - Painting
Jared Seff has been painting and drawing professionally since he was 13. Jared studied representational art at private academies and primary school until he attended The Savannah College of Art and Design in 2009. He graduated Magna Cum Laude in 2013 with a major in painting and minor in drawing. His primary focus was on drawing and painting from life with an emphasis on the figure. Upon graduating, Jared was hired at The Habersham School as a full-time visual arts instructor and curriculum developer.
Jared Seff has painted many portraits, mostly in oil, for commissions, donations, and for the pursuit of academic excellence in the tradition. Subjects have ranged from friends and family, to pop culture celebrities and former United States Presidents. In 2006, Jared worked with Sir Paul McCartney and Adopt-A-Minefield charity, raising $11,000 for a portrait he did of Sir Paul. Shortly after, he painted a portrait of former President Bill Clinton and presented it to him during his book tour, granting him a personal meeting with the former president. By the age of 18, he had many portraits painted and presented to renowned musicians, actors, United States Generals, and politicians. Portraiture has been a consistent platform for representational art and a source of passion for the artist. To this day the human subject plays a central role in almost all his work.
From 2013-2015 Jared co-managed the studio and gallery, Of Two Minds, and his artwork already resides in many significant collections including but not limited to: The Presidential Library in Little Rock, Arkansas; a portrait of SCAD President Paula Wallace which resides in the Lacoste Permanent Collection; a portrait of Brigadier General Wilma Vaught that hangs in the Women's Auxiliary at Arlington National Cemetery; a sketchbook that travels permanently with the Sketchbook Project of the Brooklyn Art Library. He has been developing work for his Modern Gladiator series for the past few years and is displaying this body of work for the first time publicly at Roots Up Gallery, Savannah, Georgia.
Jared Seff - Modern Gladiators: Ancient Theme Modern Muse
He has been developing work for his Modern Gladiator series for the past few years and is displaying this body of work for the first time publicly at Roots Up Gallery. The works in this show are meant to represent an exploration of the mixed martial arts culture and its thematic relevance across time. The ancient theme of combat as sport, is ubiquitous across history and time and has been participated in and represented by a vast array of cultures and art forms. From the wrestlers appearing on ancient Greek vessels to the boxing paintings of the early 20thcentury, this subject has always found a place in art history and culture. As a figurative artist, I have been drawn to the heroic nature of the form of the athlete while also being captivated by the narrative nature of the ring. At the same time, I recognize the sport as having a brutal aspect to it and an embracement of the spectacle. Mixed martial arts, in particular, is both a blood sport and a highly technical art form. I am attempting to display this dichotomy through the poetry of the brush and paint. It is through these poetic representations I can bring these scenes into a romantic realm that still does not mask the grit of the spectacle. An added layer of tension is that all of these scenes are directly inspired by on-site drawings and studies of my triplet brother and sister who are both mixed martial arts fighters themselves. This highly personal connection to the fights created an internal dilemma of processing outward heart-wrenching scenes. The ancient theme crescendos as my two beloved siblings enter into the ring, onto the stage, and now in paint onto the canvas.
What Goes On In Their Heads by Jared Seff is a monochrome earth toned large scale fight scene with calligraphy in the background showing through the scene.
Oil on canvas, unframed, 54" x 72"
In this series through brush and paint a poetic representation of the dichotomy between a blood sport and technical art form brings an ancient theme of combat into a romantic realm while not masking the grit of the spectacle.
An added layer of tension is that all of these scenes are directly inspired by on-site drawings and studies of Jared's triplet brother and sister who are both mixed martial arts fighters themselves. This highly personal connection to the fights created an internal dilemma of processing outward heart-wrenching scenes. The ancient theme crescendos as his two beloved siblings enter into the ring, onto the stage, and now in paint onto the canvas.
Jared Seff