I'm JERRY HARDESTY

"Inspiration is for amateurs, the rest of us just show up and get to work."  -Chuck Close

                                                                                                                                                         Artist

I am a self-promoting professional artist. However in 2006, when I began the transition from a corporate career to full-time artist, I found it difficult to introduce myself that way. I loved my work as an artist and found that my skills and creativity were a natural fit. As I progressed rapidly in this work, my self-confidence and stature as a professional became a comfortable part of my buoyant personality. Now I proudly announce, "I am a full-time artist."

Since then, I have  moved on from painting representationally to nonobjective, lyrical abstracts. my current work is based on experimentation with color and texture as it relates to common themes of music, health, and emotions. Blending saturated colors and applying resin are favorite techniques along with creating unique surfaces that produce textural depth and movement in my paintings.

I paint primarily on MDF panels or traditional canvas. Recently I built a storage rack for my paintings in the studio/garage annex. I am modest about my carpentry skills, though, and claim the rack only appears straight if you look at it with a tilted head.

I believe that being alone much of the time in childhood forced me to be creative, which prepared me for being a "loner" in the studio. In fact, I relish my "alone time." "Raspy sax and repetitive percussive beats of jazz" accompany me as I express myself on canvas.

Visual arts in public education eluded me, and I became a different kind of artist. I began singing in early childhood and aspired to becoming a professional singer. I earned a Bachelor of Arts in vocal performance and taught music for several years. While still in high school, a visit to the Nelson-Atkins Art Museum in Kansas City, Missouri opened my eyes and heart to the world of visual fine arts. I found the experience breath-taking!

Like many artists, I am often asked about my "muse," about what inspires me. I answer with a quote by Chuck Close, "Inspiration is for amateurs, the rest of us just show up and get to work." Still I find inspiration in my very first brushstroke or "marks" on canvas. Each new mark or layer is a response to the previous one. i especially enjoy discovering new tools for "mark-making" by roaming the aisles of hardware stores or the kitchen areas of department and home stores.

My mission is simple: "Paint excellent paintings; tell people about them; and sell these paintings to interested people, with the goal of making enough money to eat, drink wine, have a warm home, and not go naked."

When not painting, I work out several days a week at a nearby gym. I like having a book at hand wherever I sit in my home, and when weather permits, I enjoy biking. I have been a member of Toastmasters for several years, gaining confidence as a public speaker, which helps when I talk about my art.

I reside in Salt Lake City, Utah. I am married to a very supportive woman. We met on a blind date in Kansas City, Missouri many years ago. We have three adult children and six grandchildren.

EXHIBITS AND AWARDS

• 2019 Honoring Utah Artists, Alpine Art, Salt LakeCity, Utah
• 2019 Eccles Art Center, Petite Impressions Statewide Show, Ogden, Utah
• 2019 University of Utah Strolling for Scholarships Fundraiser, Salt Lake City, Utah
• 2019 Annual Zions Bank Artists' Reception, Salt Lake City, Utah (Sold Four Paintings)
• 2019 Dialogs 2019, Atelier 97, Arte Contemporanea with Alessio Guano, La Spezia, Italy
• 2019 Art Access, 300 Plates Show, Salt Lake City, Utah
• 2019 Spring Salon, Springville Museum of Art, Springville, Utah
• 2019 Producer & Host for Podcast, "The Artist's Voice"
• 2018 Producer & Host for Podcast, "The Artist's Voice"
• 2018 Juror, High School and Middle School Art Shows, Sandy, Utah
• 2018 "Truth and Consequences," (Group Show), Art Access, Salt Lake City, Utah
• 2017 Group Show at Art at the Main, Salt Lake City, Utah
• 2017 33 Contemporary Gallery, Chicago, Illinois
• 2017 ACS Gallery, Group Show, Chicago, Illinois
• 2017 "Doublespeak," (Solo Show) at The City Library's Marmalade Branch"
• 2017 President's Art Show, Salt Lake Community College, Salt Lake City, Utah
• 2017 Steinfeld Warehouse Community Arts Center, Tucson, Arizona
• 2017 "An Evolving Visual Feast," (Group Show), John Alan Nyberg Projects, Tucson, Arizona
• 2017 "Muse" Exhibition, Alpine Art, Salt Lake City, Utah
• 2017 300 Plates, Art Access, Salt Lake City, Utah
• 2016 Honoring Utah Artists: 12x12, Alpine Art, Salt Lake City, Utah
• 2016 300 Plates, Art Access, Salt Lake City, Utah
• 2016 Honorarium, Adobe Art Show, Adobe Headquarters, Lehi, Utah
• 2016 Adobe Art Show, Adobe Headquarters, Lehi, Utah
• 2015 18th Annual Zions Bank Artists' Reception, Salt Lake City, Utah
• 2015 The Green Room, Salt Lake Acting Company during the run of the play "Blackberry Winter," a play about Alzheimer's, My painting, the seven-panel painting of "The Seven Stages of Alzheimer's"
• 2015 "Shadow," "Infisso," and "Cube," Group Show, Abstract Show - "untitled," Alpine Art, Salt Lake City, Utah
• 2015 Co-Curator, Abstract Show - "untitled," Alpine Art, Salt Lake City, Utah
• 2015 "Exposed - Paintings by Jerry Hardesty," Salt Lake City Public Library, Salt Lake City, Utah
• 2015 Statewide Show, Bountiful Davis Art Center, Bountiful, Utah
• 2015 300 Plates, Art Access, Salt Lake City, Utah
• 2015 ArtBraKC Fundraiser, Kansas City, Missouri
• 2015 "What's My Name," Group Show with dementia/Alzheimer's theme, Art Access, Salt Lake City, Utah
• 2014 Honoring Utah Artists: 12x12, Alpine Art, Salt Lake City, Utah
• 2014 17th Annual Zions Bank Artists' Reception, Salt Lake City, Utah
• 2013 Art Access, 300 Plates Show, Salt Lake City, Utah
• 2012 15th Annual Zions Bank Artists' Reception, Salt Lake City, Utah
• 2012 “Resonance,” Solo Show, House Gallery, Salt Lake City, Utah
• 2012 Group Show, The Eccles Community Art Center, Ogden, Utah
• 2012 ”All That Jazz,” Group Show, Gallery at the Station, Ogden, Utah
• 2011 Featured Artist, Art at the Main, Salt Lake City, Utah
• 2010 Intermountain Society of Artists’ Fall Show, “Salud” and “Desiderata,” Award of Recognition for “Salud”
• 2010 Statewide Competition & Exhibition, Bountiful/Davis Art Center, Bountiful, Utah, “Noir et Blanc” and “Seascape”
• 2009 Intermountain Society of Artists’ Fall Show, Schorr Gallery, West Jordan, Utah, “Clivage Pourpre”
• 2009 Featured Artist Show, “Sorpresa,” Art at the Main, Salt Lake City, Utah
• 2009 Beyond the Border International Contemporary Art Fair, San Diego, California
• 2009 Intermountain Society of Artists’ Spring Show, Michael Berry Gallery, Salt Lake City, Utah, “Etude”
• 2008 Featured Artist Show, Art at the Main, Salt Lake City, Utah
• 2008 Intermountain Society of Artists’ Fall Show, Schorr Gallery, West Jordan, Utah, 2nd Place for “Carmen Miranda’s Antiques”
• 2008 Statewide Competition & Exhibition, Bountiful/Davis Art Center, Bountiful, Utah, “School Days”
• 2007 Intermountain Society of Artists’ Fall Show, Schorr Gallery, West Jordan, Utah, Honorable Mention for “School Days”
• 2007-2012 Art at the Main, Salt Lake City, Uta