An exploration in colorful irrelevance
Bio:
Joe Klaus is an interdisciplinary artist living and working in Philadelphia, PA. Joe has been creating since childhood, experimenting with painting, photography, and mixed media, which continue to influence their work today. Their work follows themes of memory and both personal and queer identity. They attended the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT), graduating in 2018 with a BFA in Visual Presentation and Exhibition Design and a minor in Art History. Joe has shared their irreverent conceptions across the country in various group shows and had their first solo show, Past Conversations, in early 2022. They are a member of 3rd street Gallery, an artist co-op in Philadelphia, where they live with their partner Clay and two cats, Manolo and Margo.
Statement:
My work explores the parallels of memory and identity, and the feeling of exuberance or lack thereof. It's the fine line of what we remember and imagine. It's the physical experiences, thoughts, or feelings, and how they are connected that become reality. These can be expressions from a memory I’ve never had, or one that is all too real, and I strive to further discover and understand the physical world from the inside out (or sometimes outside in).
When I'm looking to sit and think and explore, that's when my works on canvas or paper come to life; they are moments frozen in time, starting as oil paintings or photographs (or both) that become altered with acrylic paint, spray paint, markers, fabric, and whatever feels right. Subject matter shifts from personas to landscapes, abstract to more tangible, often including characters that stare blankly at the viewer, who stare blankly back at the piece. When I hyperfocus I tend to make zines; these are micro-obsessions I want to work out and make tangible, which makes this medium a perfect fit. The subject matter here varies from thematic thoughts to curated chaos and some things in between. Whether the media, I enjoy the process of creating, from picking the weight of the canvas to stapling a zine to gesso and beyond.
I get inspired by unique people, places and things (what others consider nouns)
The human form or photographs or shapes or found objects or drawings or paintings, mixed with a splash of color and a dash of texture.