Jesse Draxler

Jesse Draxler is an American visual artist, illustrator and art director.

Biography

[edit]

Jesse Draxler grew up in a rural town in Wisconsin.[1] His family had an automobile repair service and as a child he used to draw cars, trucks and engines for hours with friends.[2] In first grade, Draxler discovered that he was color blind, being red-green color deficient.[3] He studied at the College of Visual Arts in St. Paul, Minnesota. His thesis was on the commodification of subculture through the lens of punk rock, whose primary medium was collage.[4] Draxler began making exhibitions in 2012.[3]

On June 1, 2018, Draxler released the book Misophonia through Sacred Bones. The 100-page art book included a foreword written by musician Greg Puciato.[5][3] On June 15, Draxler and Puciato co-founded the record label and art collective Federal Prisoner.[6]

On September 27, 2018, Draxler premiered a short film at Davenport, Iowa with live score by Emma Ruth Rundle and Evan Patterson.[2]

On September 4, 2020, Draxler released Reigning Cement, an audio-visual project consisting of a 100-page book of photographs and collages paired with a music album formed by audio assets given to thirty-four musicians, who could arrange them at their disposal but only adding vocals, mirroring the sonic equivalent of a collage. Both the visual and audio material was taken from the noisy industrial area outside of Draxler's studio, which is located on the outskirts of Los Angeles.[7] On April 3, Draxler released its first single "Time reign cemenT", featuring Full of Hell vocalist Dylan Walker, alongside a music video premiered on Revolver.[8] On June 12, it was released the second single and video for "Them", featuring electronic band Vowws, through Juxtapoz.[7]

Artistry

[edit]

Jesse Draxler is a mixed media and multidisciplinary artist, and his pieces combine painting, photography, collage, typography and digital painting.[1] Among their characteristics are distorting the human form, working in grayscale, and abstract landscapes.[9][1] Writer Kyle Fitzpatrick described his portrayals as "a person mid-question ... Everything is abstracted just slightly, just enough to unnerve and entrance ... [It] feels as if his subjects are slowly focusing and refocusing, trying to become clearer",[10] while artist Mike Carney said that it "is an authentic look into the transitional stasis of a technologically saturated existence, and the lapse of connection, far from bridged within its void."[11]

Jesse Draxler's varied influences include heavy metal and electronic music, Zen literature, automotive machinery, background noise, and films.[2] He says that much of his work "involves directly translating what I hear into what I see."[2] He tends to write and journal extensively before working, believing that "the inception starts with thinking about it or processing an idea in my mind."[4] Before relocating from Minneapolis to Los Angeles in January 2015, Draxler cut out all color and started to work solely in black and white. As a colorblind person, he described his transition as "natural" and felt that it opened up his artistic vision rather than limiting it.[4]

Draxler's work has inspired music by Daniel Davies[12] and Zola Jesus.[13]

Works

[edit]
  • Misophonia (2018)
  • Reigning Cement (2020)
  • The World is Mine & I'm Thinking About You (2023)
  • U&I Exhibition Book (2024)

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c Hernández, Leonel (March 2016). "Jesse draxler | La retórica del horror". WARP (in Spanish). No. 79. Issuu. pp. 26–31. Retrieved June 11, 2020.
  2. ^ a b c d Musker, James. "THE WORK OF JESSE DRAXLER (FILM)". Andyr.com.au. Archived from the original on February 26, 2019. Retrieved June 11, 2020.
  3. ^ a b c Silbert, Jake (June 1, 2018). "Jesse Draxler's Stark, Haunting Artwork Surfaces in 'Misophonia'". Hypebeast.com (text and video). Event occurs at 0:11-0:19 (color blindness), 1:24-1:40 (music). Retrieved June 11, 2020.
  4. ^ a b c McDermott, Emily (January 11, 2016). "Jesse Draxler Embraces Mortality". Interview. Archived from the original on January 17, 2016. Retrieved June 12, 2020.
  5. ^ Bowe, Miles (March 27, 2018). "Visual artist Jesse Draxler announces Misophonia art book on Sacred Bones". Fact. Archived from the original on May 2, 2020. Retrieved June 11, 2020.
  6. ^ "The Black Queen Plot New Album 'Infinite Games,' Tease Music in Preview Video". Revolver. June 15, 2018. Archived from the original on August 7, 2018. Retrieved June 11, 2020.
  7. ^ a b "Music Video Premiere: Jesse Draxler & Vowws "Them"". Juxtapoz. June 12, 2020. Retrieved June 11, 2020.
  8. ^ "Hear Full of Hell Vocalist's Insane Collaboration With Artist Jesse Draxler". Revolver. April 3, 2020. Archived from the original on April 6, 2020. Retrieved June 11, 2020.
  9. ^ Toner, Paul (August 8, 2019). "10 Questions with Jesse Draxler, the Artist Behind Hugo's Latest Capsule Collection". 10 Magazine. Archived from the original on November 4, 2019. Retrieved June 11, 2020.
  10. ^ Fitzpatrick, Kyle (March 13, 2019). "The Beauty of Abstraction". Playboy.com. Retrieved June 13, 2020.
  11. ^ Carney, Mike (January 7, 2016). "Jesse Draxler: The Story of Terror Management". Juxtapoz. Vol. 23, no. 2. Issue 181. Issuu (published February 2016). pp. 95–102. ISSN 1077-8411. Archived from the original on November 16, 2016. Retrieved June 11, 2020.
  12. ^ Polson, Brian (March 19, 2020). "'Signals' Review: Daniel Davies conjures up a magical, angular, abstract world with his second solo album". Meaww. Retrieved June 12, 2020.
  13. ^ Jesus, Zola (September 11, 2017). "Muses: Zola Jesus on Franz Kline, Pierre Soulages, and Günter Brus". ARTnews. Archived from the original on January 16, 2020. Retrieved June 11, 2020.
[edit]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jesse_Draxler&oldid=1250141231"