Solo Exhibition: A Raw, Biodynamic, Grass-Fed Paradise
Jess Ackerman
                                        
Dates: February 4 - 25, 2023
Reception: Saturday, February 4 | 4 - 7 PM

​Glass Rice is proud to present A Raw, Biodynamic, Grass-Fed Paradise, Jess Ackerman’s debut solo exhibition with the gallery and co-curated with Sydney Pfaff of Legion Projects. In their latest body of work, Ackerman revisits nostalgic memories, feelings of loss, and the joys that come from growth in their signature style of bright and light hearted depictions.
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Being born in Mountain View, CA and raised nearby in San Jose, the work in this exhibition reflects their time spent in the Bay Area prior to moving to Portland, OR, where they currently reside. Still lifes of fruits native to Northern California, table scenes, wine bottles, and vessels are an homage to their early years and what was once called The Valley of Hearts Delight, now known as Silicon Valley. A region where more than 8 million flowering fruit bearing trees once dwelled, the artist mourns the loss of the natural beauty, yet also breathes new life into what the area once was through their cheerful and luminous paintings.

Through their techniques learned from patch working and quilting paired with their style of color blocking, Ackerman utilizes these skills in their paintings as a form of storytelling. They weave past memories of self and totems found in the landscape of Northern California as an ultimate journey to healing. Tables become conduits for nourishment, fruits and vessels become channels for mental, spiritual and emotional sustenance, and motorcycles and symbols of technology act as nods to the budding tech industry of the 80s and 90s.

A Raw, Biodynamic, Grass-Fed Paradise is a striking and colorful voyage - a kaleidoscopic snapshot into the inevitable growth and change of people, places, and things.

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The opening reception will run from 4 - 7 pm on February 4 and is open to the general public for walk-ins. Private appointments can be made on our website to view the exhibition after the opening reception through February 25. 
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