AVERILL PARK, N.Y.- AMI Publishers announces the release of a new book entitled, "Homage to the Creative Spirit: The Paintings of Jenness Cortez" by Baylor University art historian Dr. Karen Pope. Robert Yassin, former director of both the Indianapolis and Tucson Museums of Art, wrote the book foreword.
For centuries artists have been challenging their intellects and skills by paying homage to the painters who preceded them. Today, Jenness Cortez has emerged as the twenty-first century's most notable exponent of this facet of art history. Her masterful work gives Cortez solid footing in the colorful lineage of artists who have appropriated vintage images and woven them into their own distinctive, recognizable fabric.
In this new book, Cortez reexamines the classic paradox of realism: the painting both as a "window" into an imagined space and as a physical object. Her work challenges the viewers' intellectual curiosity and celebrates the sheer pleasure of beautiful painting. In her series of "Homage" paintings, Cortez plays author, architect, visual journalist, art historian, curator and pundit to help open our eyes to what we might otherwise have overlooked or taken for granted. Each painting presents a specific theme, mixing straightforward cues and obscure allusions, complemented by references to other artists' lives and times. By masterfully presenting iconic works of art in unexpected modern settings, Jenness Cortez inspires us to see differently--to rediscover and revalue our own creative power in everyday life.
In this volume Dr. Pope surveys and celebrates the "Homage to the Creative Spirit" series in fifty-four examples that display the range and variety of Cortez' achievement. A key to the impact and success of these paintings is the skill with which Cortez achieves meticulous likenesses of everyday objects. This quality of realism, both sensuous and immaculate, offers exceptional visual pleasures.
According to Jenness Cortez, "Every painting begins with a vision seen in the artist's mind. Sometimes the finished piece appears in the mind full-blown, and at other times it is amorphous--yet with some beguiling character that begs to be developed. In either case, between that first inspiration and the finished painting lie hours of research, thousands of choices and, of course, the great joy of painting. The process is organic. Even with a well-conceived composition in place, the painting has a life of its own and the best ones surprise even the artist with twists and turns that outshine the most clever of plans. It's as if the creative spirit insinuates itself into the work, wanting to serve its own best interest with solutions that far exceed the artist's original, limited vision."
For collectors and for fortunate gallery goers, these works are marvels to behold. Thanks to modern technology, a selection from Jenness Cortez' "Homage to the Creative Spirit" is now available at fine book sellers.
