When I was 18 years old, in the draft lottery for the Vietnam war I got a high enough number not to have to go. At that moment I was camping on Pantillon beach in Oaxaca, between Puerto Angel and Zipolite. That night I decided to become an artist because I didn't want to have any regrets about what I was going to do with my life. I wanted to do something to give back to the universe for letting me take up precious space on the planet, passing through the garden.

It's amazing that everytime I paint there is the chance that I might create the best painting of my life. One never knows how inspiration may take over. There is a zone where the paintings paint themselves and the artist just has to be present to do the physical work.

I squeeze oil paint from the tube into baby food jars. Then I thin the paint until it is the viscosity of liquid glue. My palate is set up completely with all the base colors sitting next to each other. Once that is ready the paint is applied to the canvas.

My paintings are designed to be lived with. Subliminally, they send out positive energy.

This exhibition is all about the law of averages. One in five paintings is great. If I show up everyday and paint with love, I stumble into genius.

Bright is beautiful.

May the art spirit be with you,
Jon

www.jonschooler.com

With decades of experience undertaking commissions for clients, Jon Schooler's color theory and unique approach to mixing oil paints has positioned him at the forefront of his field, inventing a new approach to mixing and applying the medium onto canvas. Possessing an enduring ability to entice, delight, and uplift, Schooler's work highlights the extraordinary intricacies of color and provides a glimpse into his personal relationship with his favorite medium.

Schooler was born in 1953 in Brooklyn, NY and is a self-taught, contemporary folk artist. He made his home in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, from 1972 until 2003 and now calls Oak Street, New Orleans his new neighborhood. His work is represented in the New Orleans Museum of Art, and regularly exhibited in solo and group exhibitions, and held in the permanent collection of the new contemporary museum in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico - Casa Museo de Arte Contemporaneo.

Artist Statement

I am a scientific painter. I experiment. Back in the day when I was doing textile printing, I saved all the excess color in jars. It looked like Walt Disney through up in a jar. I figured I would end up with a big jar of brown. But, when I threw it on a screen, it would come out as separate, marbleized colors. Later, I created a method in which I covered the canvas with paint and manipulated them with syringes and knives.

I work fast. I don't labor over a piece for months. I'll do six pieces in one night. I believe in the law of averages. I would create twenty paintings and one would turn out really well. Eventually, one in twelve would turn out incredibly well. Over the years, that number has changed in my favor.

Painting is an open window into the imagination. Art starts there. I begin with an idea which results in a physical reality that includes exciting, beautiful colors. Traveling through imagination I encounter colors that are alive and can communicate the same as advisers and allies. Colors are my friends. My work is more about colors and having fun with them, than anything else. When I start to paint, color is the only element that I can relate to. I believe each color possesses its own spirit. Pioneering throughout my imagination and mapping the process through oil paints and canvases, each painting ends up as a map documenting that place in the imagination. I like to do pieces with humor that reach the viewer. I aim for art that holds up, art that is positive with big energy; art that you can look at in the morning for a boost to start your day.

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