HERB JACKSON (BORN 1945)

Herb Jackson’s paintings are evocative abstractions, reflecting his belief that a work of art is a form of meditation. In an artist’s statement he once declared: “I want the information in my paintings to be released slowly, like a quiet flute growing louder. … I consider my work as part of nature, rather than a statement about nature, and as such, I would not be surprised to enter a deep forest and find one of my paintings among the trees.”

Jackson was born in Raleigh, North Carolina, and as a youth made numerous bus trips to the North Carolina Museum of Art. In 1962 he earned a first place award at a juried exhibition at the museum while still a student at Needham B. Broughton High School. In 1967 he graduated from Davidson College in Davidson, North Carolina, with a major in German as there was none yet in art. Nevertheless, he studied art as much as possible and began an impressive exhibition track record.

Using his language skills, he studied for a year at Philipps University in Marburg, Germany, one of the country’s oldest institutions of higher learning. In 1970 Jackson received his Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and, before finishing, he began his teaching career at his alma mater. He remained at Davidson until 2011, retiring as the Douglas Houchens Professor of Fine Arts and Professor of Art emeritus.

In addition to a rigorous teaching schedule Jackson contributed to the growth of the college’s art collection; in 1972 he instituted the first of five Davidson National Print and Drawing Competitions. He explained his dual motivations: “to let the nation know that we were serious about art now that we had an art major and … to try to build this core collection of a few pieces.” Using his own experience with such competitions, he managed an aggressive marketing campaign that resulted in submissions from forty-nine states and sufficient funds for several purchase awards.

Jackson also cultivated relationships with two noted North Carolina artists and arranged for exhibitions and honorary doctorates for both Romare Bearden (1978) and Kenneth Noland (1993). In addition Jackson facilitated the acquisition of Jean d’Aire, a life size bronze statue by Auguste Rodin which generated some controversy when it was installed because of its nudity.

Jackson’s own paintings result from a methodical system of layering, as well as from an intuitive response to the pigment itself. According to the artist: “I remain open to the direction that the painting will suggest as it becomes a more active participant in the process. I build up and scrape away the paint in many layers. The first layer is put on with no expectations as to the finished work, and even the color is selected in an arbitrary manner; however, once the second layer has been carefully laid on, it becomes necessary to consider each layer as possibly the last. As the painting progresses, forms, marks, signs and gestures begin to appear from within, and they may last for twenty or so layers, or be gone during the application of the next layers.”

Source: The Johnson Collection, Spartanburg, South Carolina
thejohnsoncollection.org

Herb Jackson was born in Raleigh, Jackson in 1945.

Herb Jackson earned his MFA from UNC-Chapel Hill in 1970. Then he taught art at Davidson College from 1969 until his retirement in 2011.

As one of North Carolina's most significant living artists, Jackson has had over 150 one-person exhibitions both nationally and internationally.

In the summer of 2017, an exhibition of major works by Jackson was among the inaugural exhibitions at the new Gregg Museum of Art & Design at NC State University.

Born in Raleigh, North Carolina, Herb Jackson earned his MFA from UNC-Chapel Hill in 1970. He taught art at Davidson College from 1969 until his retirement in 2011. As one of North Carolina's most significant living artists, Jackson has had over 150 one-person exhibitions both nationally and internationally. An exhibition of major works by Jackson was among the inaugural exhibitions in 2017/2018 at the reopening of the Gregg Museum of Art & Design at North Carolina State University, Raleigh.