Jimmy Leslie – www.leslieartstudio.com

Jimmy Leslie has spent his professional career as both and artist and an educator.  He is a graduate of the Graduate School of Figurative Art of the New York Academy of Art.  After almost 15 years of teaching in the Art & Design departments of Monmouth University, St John’s University and Brookdale Community College, owning and running the Leslie Art Studio in 2006/2007 and also working with gifted students in the Monmouth County Arts High School program Jimmy left the academic world behind.  Jimmy is now the Resident Artist/Technical Support Manager at Colart Americas, Inc. in Piscataway, NJ.  Colart is the North American distributor of Winsor & Newton and Liquitex paints as well as other brands.

Artist Statement

Jimmy LeslieIt’s important for all artists to continue to experiment in order to grow and I find myself moving in several directions simultaneously as I do so. Landscape provides me with the opportunity to capture places around me both near and far while offering the challenge of dealing with changing light.  Figurative work was my first love and I continue to be intrigued by its complexities.  Mixed media collage lets me explore the possibilities within the juxtaposition of found objects, while purely abstract paintings allow me to solely focus on the formal properties of paint that excites my senses.   But regardless of my subject matter it’s all really just an excuse to put paint on canvas, paper, or any other surface that interests me.

The mixed media collages in this series are part of an on-going series based mostly (but not all of the time) on my travels.  My job as Resident Artist for an art materials manufacturer leads me to many places near and far as does the travel I embark on purely for pleasure.  It’s seeing new places and meeting new people that makes me want to collect images from these travels and the result ends up being a much more complete record of where I’ve been.

Jimmy LeslieGenerally speaking, when I look at my surroundings it’s color, geometry and composition that capture my attention in whatever form they appear.  I sometimes find myself more interested in the process rather than the finished product.  The love is in the labor of working with my hands and struggling to move, manipulate, and arrange forms until I find a resolution that suits my aesthetic sensibilities.  Simply put, I go into my studio with a very working-class mentality; I try to solve a problem with simple materials and hope that in the end I feel satisfied with a job well done.


Solo Exhibitions

2010 The Tides Hotel, Asbury Park, NJ
2008 Market in the Middle, Asbury Park, NJ
2006 Mitchell Sanborn Gallery, Keyport, NJ
2005 Potter Library Gallery, Ramapo College of NJ, Mahwah, NJ
2004 Interiors, the Louisa Melrose Gallery, Frenchtown, NJ
Atlantic City Arts Center, Atlantic City, NJ
Places and Spaces, Ocean City Arts Center, Ocean City, NJ
2003 Recent Paintings, Westby Gallery, Rowan University, Glassboro, NJ
Surroundings, Johnson & Johnson World Headquarters, New Brunswick, NJ
2001 Interiors and Exteriors, the Gallery of South Orange, South Orange, NJ
1999 Past and Present, The New Jersey Repertory Company, Long Branch, NJ
1997 Thompson Park, Lincroft, NJ.  Sponsored by the Monmouth County Council on the Arts
1995 Thompson Park, Lincroft, NJ.  Sponsored by Monmouth County Council of the Arts

Awards/Honors

2008 Filmed four instructional art DVDs at Jerry’s Artarama HQ in Raleigh, NC
Who’s Who in American Artists 2007 Edition
Painting “Creek bed” chosen for cover of the Brookdale Community College 2007 course catalog
Painting “Beach Path” chosen for June image in Brookdale Community College calendar
Painting “West on Obre Place” included in APeX Gallery calendar, Asbury Park, NJ
1999 Finalist in the National Juried Show on-line at www.eatbugs.net Minneapolis, MN
Scholarship recipient for The Vermont Studio Center Artist in Residency program
Special recognition Award, All Media ’99, Nat’l Juried Exhibition, The Period Gallery, Omaha, NE
1998 Special recognition Award, Figurative Small Works Exhibition at the Robert & Mary Montgomery Armory Art Center in West Palm Beach, FL
Highest Achievement in Show Award, Art Center of Northern New Jersey National Juried Show, New Milford, NJ

Reviews/Articles

2010 Jersey Alive! , Asbury Park Press, NJ, art news by Bobbi Seidel Nov.17th (illus.)
M.A.R. Magazine, Red bank, NJ, July Issue, feature article by Jennifer Cattuai (illus.)
Upstage Magazine, Spring Lake, NJ, July issue
Asbury Park Press A&E section, Alive, Asbury Park, NJ, feature article by Bobbi Seidel, Aug. 18th. (Illus.)
2005 The Hub Newspaper, Red Bank, NJ, Oct. 6th, (Illus.)
The Two River Times, Red Bank, NJ, Oct. 6th, Article (Illus.)
2004 Nouveau Magazine, New Hope, PA, Jan. issue, Gallery Highlights, section (Illus.)
Ocean City Sentinel, Ocean City, NJ, May 13th
2003 The Sunday Standard Times, New Bedford, MA, Sept.
1999 Budo magazine, Red Bank, NJ, May issue, feature article by Mary Ann Greco (Illus.)
The Hub newspaper, Red bank NJ, May 12th, feature article (Illus.)
Register-Guard, Eugene, Oregon, Nov., La Petite VI at the Alder Gallery
Asbury Park Press A&E section, Alive, Asbury Park, NJ, March, featured artist (Illus.)
1996 Home News & Tribune, A&E section, On the Go, Neptune, NJ, Sept., Cover Artist (Illus.)

Education

1993 MFA, Painting, Graduate School of Figurative Art of the New York Academy of Art, New York, New York
1991 Continuing Education Classes, Graduate School of Figurative Art of the New York Academy of Art, New York, NY
1990 BA, Art, Monmouth University, West Long Branch, New Jersey

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  1. […] III” features the work of Dara Alter, Agop Gemdijian, John Hawaka, Carlos Frias, Jimmy Leslie, Alexandra Pacula and Vesselin Kourtev, and introduces Linda Gebhard and Brian Bulfer, who are both […]

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