Jeffrey Vallance has attained something akin to cult status. His work covers a wide range of media and is based on consumer and popular culture, and is ironically critical without being didactic. Vallance never makes fun of his subjects, but rather uses what is around him — be it a store bought chicken, the work of Thomas Kinkade or President Richard Nixon — to explore how context can shape meaning. Born in Redondo Beach in 1955 and educated at California State University Northridge (BA 1979) and Otis College (MFA 1981), Vallance resides in the San Fernando Valley. Though considered a Los Angeles artist, his art practice has taken him all over the world. He has traveled to Polynesia to research and make work about the myth of Tiki as well as to the Vatican to study Christian relics. He even created a Richard Nixon Museum after the official Nixon library refused to accept his donation of Nixon inspired artwork. "Now More Than Ever" focuses on his works on paper. The exhibition and accompanying annotated catalogue entitled "Rudis Tractus (Rough Drawings)" provide an intimate look at the motivating forces behind many of Vallance's projects.
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Visual Art Source