JOHN MELLENCAMP PAINTINGS AND ASSEMBLAGES AT THE THYEN-CLARK CULTURAL CENTER EXHIBIT DATES: JANUARY 7th – MARCH 28th, 2021

Jasper Community Arts is pleased to present the first exhibition at the Thyen-Clark Cultural  Center of John Mellencamp’s Paintings and Assemblages.  

The creative spirit often finds multiple expressions and such is the case with John Mellencamp. Known primarily for his music, Mellencamp, is a legendary musician and Long-time activist. He is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and recipient of The  Woody Guthrie Award.  

He is also an accomplished painter who has seriously pursued painting for more than 35 years. He has had solo exhibitions at the Butler Institute of American Art, Youngstown,  Ohio; the Tennessee State Museum, Nashville, the Museum of Art—Deland, Florida, the  Morris Museum of Art, Augusta, Georgia and three exhibits including a two man exhibition with Robert Rauschenberg at the famed ACA Galleries in New York City. 

Raised in Indiana and influenced by his mother who painted in the family home throughout his childhood, Mellencamp’s urge to paint started at ten years old when he began experimenting with oils. Later, he came to New York with the intention of studying  painting if his music-career aspirations didn't pan out. He had his first formal training at the Art Students League, with portraitist David Leffel, where he discovered German art and the work of Twentieth - Century Modernists such as Walt Kuhn, Chaim Soutine and  Max Beckmann.  

As his musical career flourished, Mellencamp also continued painting and began to paint earnestly in the 1980's as a means of further artistic exploration. He evolved a style of  portraiture influenced by the paintings of the German Expressionists, particularly Max  Beckmann and Otto Dix.  

Beginning with an early affinity for portraiture Mellencamp found his visual voice in  Expressionism. The German Expressionism of the early Twentieth  Century, with its anguish  over human brutality and corruption, spoke to Mellencamp’s deep feelings about social  justice. His kinship with the Expressionist artists, both by inheritance—he is the descendant  of German immigrants—and attitude, served as the foundation for the development of Mellencamp’s own oeuvre. But though that foundation is German, the evolved result is decidedly American, with the brash and snappy visual rhythms of our streets, our lives, our politics, angers and passions.  

Mellencamp’s imagery thus takes its inspiration from the same sources as his music: the struggles of the working man and woman, oppressive authority and social struggle. And like his music, the paintings are carefully composed through the structural requirements of  harmony, rhythm and order.  

Mellencamp continues to live in his native Indiana, where he maintains his home and studio outside Bloomington, where painting continues to be a mainstay of his creative spirit.  

About John Mellencamp 
Born and raised in Seymour, Indiana, John Mellencamp is an acclaimed singer-songwriter and musician, as well as an accomplished painter and long-time activist. Mellencamp started painting at an early age, influenced by his mother, also an artist. Mellencamp  studied briefly at the Arts Student League in New York, where he discovered the work of Twentieth-Century Modernists. As his musical career flourished, Mellencamp began to paint earnestly in the 1980s with an early affinity for portraiture influenced by the works of  Otto Dix and Max Beckmann. He is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, a  Grammy winner, recipient of The Woody Guthrie Award, the John Steinbeck Award,  ASCAP Foundation's Champion Award, the Americana Music Association's Lifetime Achievement Award, the Founders Award, a member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame and  co-founder of Farm Aid – a nonprofit organization whose mission is to keep family farmers on the land. www.johnmellencampart.com | @johnmellencamp  

The exhibit will be in the Thyen-Clark Cultural Center from January 7th– March 28, 2021.  Jasper Community Arts will host multiple events celebrating John Mellencamp while his artwork is on display. In addition the Next Act, Inc. will host a raffle with Mellencamp  memorabilia. 

Virtual Grand Opening/Mellencamp Raffle:  
The first special event will begin with the Virtual Exhibit Opening on Thursday, January 7, 2021. Starting at 4:30pm EST the public will have access to the exhibit online at, www.jasperarts.org