While it might seem like Melbourne is the breeding ground for all good street art, there’s a Geelong artist (who goes by the name Jaesus) who’s giving us all something to think about with her work. With pieces in the streets and at cafes in town, Jaesus has just put together an exhibition on the concept of ‘binge-thinking’.
Hi Jaesus, thanks for taking the time to chat with Forte Magazine, how are you and what are you up to at the moment?
I’m a bit lost actually! Now the exhibition is up and my ‘To Do List’ isn’t as daunting I don’t know what to do with myself. I can finally get stuck into the projects I’ve been putting off and it feels really weird.
You’ve just finished hanging the works to your new exhibition at Little Creatures, how’s it looking?
I’m so stoked with how it looks. I found it difficult to visualise the whole thing (especially with the canvasses stacked in my lounge room) so to see it all come together has been quite bizarre, but I couldn’t be happier.
And how long have you been working on this collection for?
The ‘binge thinking is bad for your health’ stencil came about a couple of years ago now, but the collection itself has predominantly been done this year. I started painting and saw a theme so I just ran with it.
You’ve used a lot of re-purposed canvas for this series, where did you find them?
A few were mine from old projects (some are from when I was at school), some from friends and relatives. I just love the idea that there’s something hidden under there now and it adds so much texture – made it feel a bit more like painting on a wall than a canvas.
The exhibition is titled ‘Binge Thinking is Bad for Your Health’, which is something we all do. What are the things you find yourself often binge thinking about?
SeaWorld, my boyfriend, Prince, animals/animal cruelty, why people find it so hard to live and let live, conspiracy theories, Pomeranians, why they put milk powder in everything, how Trump could possibly end up president … you know, the usual stuff. My group of friends and family are pretty eclectic so I get lots of ideas in my head (and can’t get many of them out).
While this collection is a bit more formal, you actually do a lot of murals and street art pieces. Do you remember your first street art? What was that feeling like of putting something on a wall like that and knowing it’s not completely permanent?
I sure do. It was a great learning curve for me – not only about the art not being permanent but about not becoming too attached to it. The first mural I did was for a friend at the time at a cafe and I did it for free. It then got painted over after I did another piece at what he thought was a similar venue. I’m glad it happened because it was a really early reminder that although it’s my art and it might mean a lot to me, at the end of the day it’s not actually me on the wall and it’s not that important to anybody else. Now I find it really interesting to see what lasts and what doesn’t and to see what other people add to it once it’s on the wall. Once it’s there it’s not yours anymore.
What came first for you; street art or traditional means?
Definitely traditional – I started mixing around with different mediums at school but I think the real pull towards street art for me is that it doesn’t have to be neat or clean. I don’t like anything too structured so it seemed like the place my art fits – finally the grungy aspect worked for me not against me.
A lot of your work circles around the idea of existential crisis’, have you had yours yet? What was it over?
That’s the thing about existentialism – there are no answers. Depending on what day it is that’s as freeing as it is terrifying but I don’t think it will ever be over. It’s why I go by Jaesus – the whole religion thing is a bit of a joke to me and people are dying because of it every single day. It really does my head in.
Do you think it’s something we all go through at some point in time?
I think we all should. The brain is a very powerful thing, to me it seems strange and a huge waste to not use yours to develop your own ideas/rules rather than just lazily following a set that have been handed to you.
What are you hoping for viewers to take away from this new collection of works?
For me this exhibition is about not only thinking for yourself but about letting other people think for themselves.
Thanks again for taking the time to chat with us, are there any last words of wisdom you’d like to leave our readers with?
“Make the rules, then break them all ’cause you are the best” Prince
You can see more of Jaesus’ work at www.myheadsajungle.com or on Instagram (@myheadsajungle).
When & Where: ‘Binge Thinking is Bad For Your Health’ runs until July 24 at Little Creatures Brewery in South Geelong.
