Parris Jaru Paintings

Parris Jaru's I Swallowed a Gold Fish is a 9 x 12 inches surrealist oil painting representing a dog, a duck and a gun. The main colors are a bright orange, and green. The surface is ...

Parris Jaru's Black and White is a 18 x 15 inches oil painting. The surface is defined by a thick impasto of paint, made with plant based pigments that Jaru collects himself during his long exploratory trips through India. The main colors are black, white and gray. The surface is scraped and incised with words and signs, almost like graffiti on a wall or inscriptions on an archaeological fragment. Parris was born in NY and grew up in St. Ann's Bay, Jamaica, until he was ten years old. Partly Jamaican and Blackfoot Indian from his father's side and partly Arawak Indian from his mother, Parris brings into his creative process a wonderful mix of different ethnicities that reflects throughout his work. The artist states "Throughout my life I have always been dedicated to Art but painting has added a patience of perception and love to my conscience mind, as well cultivating my unconscious. Painting gives me a confidence and inner security that has been hard for me to attain elsewhere. When I say a piece has turned out really well, a certain balance has been achieved between composition, perspective, color and depth giving my creative side a jolt. Although my works change frequently in form depending on mood and inspiration, the one thing that remains the same in all my works is an abstract touch. I am drawn mostly to abstract expression for the free-flowing aspect of creation. My favorite material is Plant-Pigment-Powder (ex; Sea Algae, Hibiscus, Gymnema Sylvestre and Turmeric powder. Mixing these pigments reminds me that nature is the purest example of artistic perfection and composition open to interpretation for all. With this understanding I am able to open communications with the energies of nature. the main purpose of these herbs are for medicinal healing, when I add it to my medium it adds an ethereal quality to my works. When I select my materials, I am very specific with my choices, after trial and error I work exclusively with denser herbs giving me the texture I desire and is compatible with oil paints and acrylics, adding depth and longevity to the works. Although I am drawn to blues, reds and blacks for body, my favorite colors are the highlights, whites, yellows, and light grey. I know a piece is done when it feels right, with clarity, movement and composition also complementing my sense of imagination. When my work is going well, I am filled with a sense of wonder and creative joy open to all possibilities of creation. When people see my painting’s I like them to share a part of my thoughts and inspiration, looking at the artist and his works from the inside. I reach my end goal when the painting has connected another link in the chain of an individual’s emotions." Related keywords: Caribbean Artist, Brooklyn Artist, American Indian artist, Figurative Painting, Poems, Poetry, Ancient Fragment...

Parris Jaru's The Valley of Dancers is a 9.5 x 8 inches expressionist oil painting. The main colors are black and blue. Whereas a flying black bird is clearly recognizable, the rest ...

Parris Jaru's Gun Control is a 9 x 12-inch surrealist oil painting representing a dog, a duck, and a gun. The primary colors are bright orange and black. A...

Parris Jaru's A Place to Hide is a 9 x 12 inches oil painting representing surrealist animals. The primary color is a bright yellow and blue. A glittering paint defines the surface of the canvas. Jaru creates colors from plant-based pigments that Jaru collects during his long exploratory trips through India. The imagery is very playful, presenting surrealist animals drawn with the simplification of forms of some faux-naive art and some graffiti and street artworks. NY-born Parris Jaru comes from a Jamaican, Blackfoot Nation, and Arawak Nation background from both his parents. His work is informed by the vivid colors and imagery experienced in his childhood years spent in the coastal town of St. Ann’s Bay, Jamaica. His exploratory journeys in India enriched his work with a sensibility to natural plant-based pigments that he grinds with oils for his paintings. In his Brooklyn studio, Jaru brings all these cultural inspirations together. His entire body of work is informed by an intentional childlike, faux-naïve style, constantly shifting between figurative and abstraction. Even though at times, Jaru has been working on somber and entirely figure-free paintings, most of his work is defined by poignantly colored and playful surrealistic figures. Jaru often draws his figures with a continuous line emerging from a thick impasto of paint made with powders of Sea Algae, Hibiscus, Gymnema Sylvestre, and Turmeric. Related keywords: Caribbean Artist...