BIO

Gregg Jabs is a Wisconsin native who has been living in California for the past 23 years. He received his Masters of Fine Art degree from San Diego State University, and a Bachelor of Science from California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo. He currently resides in Northern California in the Bay Area.

Gregg has participated in numerous shows, throughout the United States, and in Italy while studying art at The Academia Di Belle Arti, in Florence. Drawing from personal experience he creates narrative installations using multiple figures. The subject matter is usually of a serious nature, placed in a larger social context, and most often presented with a wry a sense of humor. His subject matter varies between the personal issues we face throughout life, to social and political commentaries. Gregg is grounded in the ceramic arts but he enjoys using mixed media to present his concepts and hopes to make an impact in the contemporary art world by helping to elevate the status of clay as a viable and serious fine art medium.  

 


                                                 Artist Statement       

Our attachment to this physical world is a constructed narrative that is culturally grounded and shaped by society. I enjoy investigating the role that society plays in shaping our beliefs and behavior, and thus, our concept of “self”. My work is an exploration of our individual, and collective identities, associated with this cultural upbringing. I investigate the myths and stereotypes imposed upon us, as well as the challenges we face in confronting the difficulties, obstacles, and fears, in our progression towards a higher degree of self-awareness.

In my work I often use multiple figures to present social and personal narratives that explore the delicate balance between the collective identity and individual response. I engage the contemporary issues by presenting challenging images that are both politically and socially relevant, and powerfully personal. I believe that both the physical and mental aspects involved with the creating and building processes are not only a search for self-discovery, but also a liberation from one’s “self“. In a sense, it is an archaeological dig, a process of exploration, discovery, deconstruction, and reconstruction.