Meet Artevaggio’s Featured Artist: John Jaster

When did you first realize you were an artist?
During grade school I was always sketching animals and people. I got to where I could realistically draw anything I looked at. In college I started painting album covers on 36×36 canvases and gave them all away to friends. I never thought of myself as an artist. Several years ago my wife bought me a large studio easel to encourage me to start painting again. I began to realize I was an artist when my paintings began winning contests.

Could you tell us about your work?
I work with heavy body acrylics on fairly large canvases with a lot of detail and bold colors. I call my style realistic impressions because, while the overall feel of my work is definitely realism, I like to offset the detail with impressionistic splashes of color, especially in the reflections and shadows. Currently I am interested in capturing bits of Americana from my youth; I use a lot of black and white photographs as reference. I’d like to try my hand at landscapes next.

What artists have influenced your work?
Since I really only started painting for real four years ago, any influence on my work comes from other painters I find on the Internet. I’ve collected samples from hundreds of artists. If I had to name a few I would include Andrea Baruffi, Aldo Balding, Andrea Kowch, Brian Keeler and Janet Ternoff.

What is your creative inspiration?
Right now my inspiration comes from the hidden beauty in ordinary things. When i pick a subject for a new painting my goal is not to render it realistically, but to polish it like precious stone until it’s brilliance nearly blinds me.

What other interests do you have besides creating art?
I am a software engineer by trade so I still enjoy designing systems. Other than that I am an avid reader and enjoy walking mountain trails with my wife and dachshunds.

What advice would you give to a new artist?
Don’t get stuck in a rut when just starting out. Paint everything you see that has interest. Make mistakes, paint over, don’t be afraid to try something new. Find artists you like and try to copy some of their paintings. This is a great way to figure out how they do some of the things they do.

Could you give some advice about the business side of being an artist?
I am too new at the game to pretend I can advise anyone on that. I enter a lot of juried art shows and it seems to have started paying off.

Where do you see yourself in 10 years from now?
Able to make a living as a full-time artist.

CLICK HERE to go to John’s personal website.