​Contemporary South African Art

Jones, Simon

The following  Artist' biography was first published by http://www.capegallery.co.za/

  

Major shows include:

1979 Cape Town Biennial
1981 Republic Festival Exhibition
1982 Cape Town Triennial
1985 Cape Town Triennial

Included in the following local collections:
Iziko: (S A National Gallery, Cape Town)
Pretoria Art Museum
William Humphreys Art Gallery, Kimberley
King George VI Gallery Port Elizabeth
Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Museum
Pietersburg Art Gallery
University of the Orange Free State
Sasol
Tuynhuys
Sanlam
Telkom

 

Simon Jones lives and works in Fish Hoek, Cape Town.

This is Simon's 18th one-man show after an unusually long gestation period of 10 years.

A strong metaphysical, as opposed to surreal element, is present in his work. Simon has evolved a very personal vision and interpretation  of the world, where the timeless and universal take precedence over a sequential presentation of specific events seen in an historical perspective.Simon's art, especially in its present idiom, is seldom about an alternative realm where the brutal curve balls of life never bounce over the thresholds of our comfort zones. The real world, as opposed to escapism, is his jumping board.

 

He ponders, in his quiet way, upon its various facets and paradoxes, using symbolic imaging. The lyrical arabesque patterning of his signature style facilitates a shift of emphasis to the mystical and spiritual, away from the dogmatic. His vision of an otherwise turbulent world has an aura that speaks of a life less transitory.Simon's indelible technique of finely gradated planes of colour is enhancedby additional texture and bright shocks of lucid hue. High relief work adds an almost "3 D" effect in places: trees and the stems of flowers stand out in particular. Although Simon doesn¹t believe in the concept of a creative comfort zone, an ever-present musical backdrop and copious amounts of coffee are prerequisites to getting his creative juices flowing.
 

His vast collection of CD covers everything from jazz to classical; however for painting purposes, he favours anything from contemporary country music to rock, much of which echoes the 60's era, which Simon begrudgingly admits to remembering.

Important to Simon is an authentic emotional rapport with his audience,where the right-brain activity of creation elicits a reciprocal feeling reaction. Fathoming out a picture is poles apart from resolving a SuDoku puzzle. He feels that to a great extent the visual arts take their cue from the past. Though not consciously influenced by other artists, Simon has a strong affinity for the early murals of Duccio and Giotto, especially their lyrical line work and subtle yet resonant colours. Lesser known artistssuch as Carlo Carra, a metaphysical contemporaryof de Chirico's, Christopher Wood and Odilon Redon have similarly had a profound effect on him.