Jacob “Pucky” Sousa
b. 1992
Throughout time, humans have reached for painting to illustrate the story of our world, our confusions, our fears, and our achievements. Today, when art calls upon the events of the past we are able to draw parallels to ourselves. Similarly, by recalling divine creatures of ancient mythology or folklore, we are able to connect ourselves to greater ideas that don’t inherently take physical form. For example, Masolino’s “Temptation of Adam and Eve,” in the Church of Santa Marina de Carmine, c. 1434. In this piece, the serpent is depicted as having a human head on a serpent’s body, the face virtually mirroring that of Eve. While the serpent in the garden may not widely have been known to appear as a blonde-headed woman universally, we can assume that human features reflected in non-human creatures can depict either the greatest or the worst of us - all of which is determined by existing conceptions within a society.
In my paintings, I often utilize bold colors and a visual lexicon informed by a variety of illustrative animation styles to reveal personal fascinations, concealed memories, utopian dreams, and psychological truths about myself. The emergence of meaning comes in the form of animals, objects, or colors and occurs when following an intuitive call to create rather than a preconceived expression of ideas. In recent months, this has taken the shape of scenes existing in one universe. This world calls upon both the symbolic lineage of Western folklore and also religious imagery of medieval-era Christianity. By conjuring varied styles, colors, figures, and creatures, I’m enjoying the exploration of story and interpretation. From a personal standpoint, the paintings continue to serve the purpose of self-exploration and understanding while leaning into a more familiar construction of symbolism that invites others to connect in their own manner. Ideally, each viewer is able to connect with these paintings in a way that not only conveys narrative themes but emotional themes as well. While narrative appears to be the dominant force in these paintings, it is actually secondary to the larger themes that arise from the collective subconscious.