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New Zealand is one of those places on Earth right out of a story. Jason Woodside knows this because he swapped New York for the natural exuberance of Oceania.
Perhaps this is reflected in what he paints, in that abstraction full of textures and colors. Or maybe not, but what we do know is that this change of environment allowed him to explore and grow as an artist and as a person.
In a video he describes his creative process, and how it has led him to paint -among other things- surfboards with our Water Based. The video comes to us from our subsidiary in Australia. We have taken the opportunity to ask the artist some extra questions to get to know him in greater depth.
What did it mean as an artist to move from the US to NZ?
In the US I was really confined to that grindy headspace of living in New York City. It’s amazing and I love it, but after 20 years or so you start to feel like you’re missing other aspects of life.. and just like anything else, it’s nice to challenge yourself in different ways. I enjoy immersing myself into nature, and that was some thing I was really longing for. Living in a place like New Zealand I have much more space, as well as the ability to surround myself in those nature elements. Considering that move, I feel like it’s helped my work evolve in so many different ways.
“I think there’s a foundation to my work that plays a big part of my output, which is storytelling and exploring aspects of light, color and movement.”
How have you come to develop your style?
I started drawing and painting at a young age. I think there’s a foundation to my work that plays a big part of my output, which is storytelling and exploring aspects of light, color and movement. This stems from wanting to be a cinematographer at quite a young age. When I was 17 I moved to New York to study at SVA, hoping to pursue film as an actual career. Then once I understood it takes a crew to make a movie, I began to pursue something that was much more self-sufficient, and that I had the control to accomplish myself. The street level side of what I do was a natural progression that came through friendships and other like-minded skateboarders. We would go skateboarding at night. The city was empty and we’d bring paints and posters as well..
From your point of view, what makes you stand out from other artists within your same movement/environment?
I think something genuine that I offer. There’s obviously lots of trends, and I very rarely keep up with anything going on in the art world. I’m very interested in progressing through my own process at my own speed, because this is what I love to do. If people dig it, they dig it. Either way, this train continues to move.
What are your artistic or musical references?
There’s a wide range of things that I listen to. For instance, when I’m painting walls, I listen to a lot of punk rock music from the 70s, 80s, and 90s as this keeps me going, and triggers some nostalgia. When I’m in the studio I like to relax and tune out from any pressure.. and try my best to hyper focus, and this playlist can be anything from jazz to elevator music.. the more ambient the better.
Finally, a great what if… If you weren’t doing what you are doing, what would you do with your life? How would you channel your creativity?
Man, I’d probably go back to doing something in the film realm.. cinematography, or even screenwriting.
2 What do you think?
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