CURSED DEATH…Jason Barnett

Jason Barnett‘s oil paintings take dark art to another level. By that I mean that when I look at his paintings, I see abstract precision in his gory depictions, I see classic lines in his decaying faces. I feel like I am looking at an artist that knows his voice, and speaks with it clearly in his work. Much of Barnett’s work leaves me with an unsettled feeling, like I have suddenly been transported into an alternate universe where I am alone and weird. I am surrounded by eyes that look skyward as if waiting for the stars to descend, eyes that gaze on me with menace, and eyes that look through my flesh and bones as if I am nothing, as if those eyes hold the secrets of my life and death. His subjects invoke a mask-like stillness, but like ritual masks they express deep truths and emotions that they reflect back on the viewer. Maybe it’s this expressiveness that leaves me feeling both entranced and uncomfortable at the same time. Many of his subjects wear the Third Eye both in their hearts and on their foreheads, signifying the unconscious knowledge that we all have, but that many of us ignore. They are often multi-faced, looking directly at us, but also around and behind themselves, with death masks, skulls and flesh all sharing the same head. Barnett is not only skilled in oils, but he also creates street art of epic proportions, and is a member of the sadly former band Life Erased. After the jump, check out a selection of his work…