Phase 2021

Jason Limon painted “Phase” with acrylic on wood panel, and I can just feel the artist's hand at work. The artist has conjured this eerie skull using muted, almost sepia tones, which gives it an antique feel, like it’s been sitting in a dusty cabinet for centuries. I imagine Jason building up this image in layers, starting with the deep turquoise background flecked with these tiny stars. The artist may have been thinking about mortality, and how the phases of life and death are observed by these giant eyeballs, held tenderly by bony skeleton hands. There’s this amazing tension between the macabre and the whimsical, which puts me in mind of the Day of the Dead celebrations in Mexico. Limon uses the texture of the wood panel itself to add to the aged and unsettling effect. I can see how the letters spelling out PHASE have been painted on roughly, adding to the sense of something ancient, uncovered and brought to light. It makes me think about how we're all just passing through different phases, and art like this reminds me of our shared human experience.