The Fetid Corpulence of Brian K. Jones

Brian K. Jones' paintings of fat men culled from the Craigslist classifieds are strangely alluring. I usually find that source material of this nature trumps any “artistic” copy because of the incredible difficulty in conveying the dense but subtle narratives of the originals. Jones seemingly started this project for shits and giggles (some of the paintings come off as one-note fat man jokes) but somewhere along the line he hit a painterly stride where he began to enjoy rendering the mounds and folds of flesh in a manner not unlike Jenny Saville albeit in a much (appropriately) cruder manner.

Comments

[RioRico]

How many here can say that this is like looking in a mirror?

[Dale Hazelton]

Anyone who's taken life drawing without giggling knows that the more corpulent form is far superior to render (no pun intended). But these gentlemen need more stylish underpants, no?

[Listener James from Westwood]

If he's gonna wear those sort of underpants, he's gotta have the sock garters.

Typing "garters" anywhere on this page with that picture makes me shudder.

[Scott Muni]

I'm not corpulent, but I know what I like!

[anonymous blog fan]

wait, so this painter spent time corresponding with fat guys found online via CP posts and then got pictures and used them as reference???
While the pictures are amazing, beautiful and creepy, I am FAR more creeped out by the dishonesty of the painter.
Do these guys know you used them like this? Might they object or be a bit pissed off or upset by this?
Is their crime being fat or lonely or ugly or dumb enough to troll CL and send out pictures? What if someone used YOUR personal image like this?
What a creepy way to spend your time. like a version of a mean kid on a playground throwing rocks at a strange fat kid. NOT cool no matter how talented you are...

not like I think you need to paint still lifes, but damn, isn't there enough porn available out there featuring people who KNOW their image is going public???

sorry, wfmu + mr jubbo: while I am not a fat man [rather a thin woman] I'm totally sympathetic to these er 'subjects' and while the artist's technique is fine, taking a cheap shot at the ickiness of fat people's sexuality and amping up their freakiness is not ok ethically.

[fatty jubbo]

There is no apparent dishonesty involved. People post these photos for everyone to see on Craigslist. It is a matter of finding They are found photos. I cannot vouch for every photo but they have the tell-tale signs of amateur photos that you usually find on the classified section. The most recognizable one being the man with the plant in front of him- although the original had a more prominent diaper and no plant.

The point of the post was that the series started as simple gawking and developed into something more. If you haven't noticed, I post mostly about art that is about the body and artists' relationships to the body. I relate to this work as I have a love/hate relationship with my own pathetic oozing body.

I suspect this is a posting by a comment troll, as the patronizing language towards fat people's "icky sexuality" is meant for me to get tangled in a tedious and pointless debate.

[Brian Jones]

Hello I'm Brian Jones the skinny-ass painter of these little guys. I was totally surprised this morning to check my email and find a friend's note about me being a Blog subject. I guess I should make some sorta statement to explain away my abusive bullying of people of girth. First I do not deny being a bully....none of my friends would deny it...but I do not think that is at play here in these pieces. I have gleaned these pics off of the internet and treat them as if their bodies have been donated to art. They are posted for pleasure and I cannot help but to find it with every brush stroke. It is a naughty, giggly innocent pleasure and in no ways in my mind truly mocking. I find these images and often reduce the sexual aggression, play up the childlike joy, and ad bad socks, underwear, and furniture. Jenny Saville (who I admire) is a superior painter with a superior education and maybe the emotional insight of a slightly chubby girl. Her subjects, however know no joy or happines. Mine are the sweet affordable "Little Debbie" snack cakes and hers is the bloody slab of corn fed grade A beef hanging in the cold storage of an uptown butchershop. Hanging meat? Moist snack cake? I'm cheap and sweet. LOL

[fatty jubbo]

thanks for commenting, Brian! I love the stuff and your explaination is just as funny.