Jay’s recent paintings involve a continued exploration of incidental gestures and lowbrow symbolism culled from the urban streetscape. The source material is gathered from scavenging the streets (Ybor City, FL is a staple) for hedonistic remnants: club wristbands, flyers distressed from exposure to the elements, and discarded detritus are favorites. During these pedestrian excursions, he photographs specific situations to be used later as the possible catalyst for paintings.

He mostly avoids loaded subject matter (dolphins, smiley faces, words), opting for imagery that lends itself to subjective interpretation (generic patterns, graphic gestures, abstracted figures). Balancing elements of popular culture with high formalism has been a reoccurring theme throughout his decade-long practice, however, during the last two years he has relied less on representation and more on non-objective forms.

In the studio, he processes his inspiration through thumbnail sketches and digital drawings that are printed for reference. This reference is a starting point, from which the process often dictates the direction a painting may go or abruptly end. There is a level of risk in this layered process that he finds exciting and sometimes defeating.

He sees painting as a non-threatening response to his conscious and subconscious need to communicate. He describes it as ‘a way to celebrate the beauty in the inherent failures of civilized society’.