Meet John Cox

We were lucky to catch up with John Cox recently and have shared our conversation below.

John, so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?

I feel fortunate that I found what I feel is my purpose early in life. Around the age of twelve, while on a trip to the Dallas Museum of Art, I encountered The Icebergs by Frederic Edwin Church. This large canvas from 1861 depicts exactly what is stated in the title. However, the experience of viewing this work was transcendent for me. It was so much more than just looking at a picture. Not only was the landscape exotic and alien but the light in the work did something truly fantastic. It shimmered on the icebergs and rippled across the water, it moved in ways I didn’t realize a still image could move. The painting was dazzling. Its effect was something that tickled my brain in ways I couldn’t explain. This was the sort of experience I had not realized I was hungry for.

Growing up, my relationship with my parents and the broader world was largely transactional. I’d always felt different and in my own world as a child. Although I longed for something more substantial, I struggled to form connections beyond the superficial. I didn’t play sports, nor was I athletically or mechanically inclined. My brother and I spent loads of time together, but my childhood felt distinctively lonely. Art became a way for me to connect with others. The making, viewing and sharing of art gave me a relational experience in contrast to that transactional existence. Art was an outlet for my emotional sensitivity and empathy that I had largely calloused over. It took the sting out of that isolation I felt. For me, art is something deeply meaningful and painting in particular holds a special type of magic. The evocative experience of viewing a work of art connects the world of the viewer to that of the creator despite the singular nature of viewership. Color, light and composition communicate a world view across space and time. The Icebergs conveyed a sense of awe and wonder that I’m sure Church felt when he viewed the Arctic landscape. If somebody else could feel something so relatable but so beyond everyday language then maybe I didn’t need to feel so trapped in my own head.

I believe this experience sent me on the trajectory I am still on today. It sent me in search of others looking to have equally profound personal experiences. At the age of 18 I was introduced to late 20th century abstract painting further expanding my understanding of what art could be and how it communicates. In the years that followed, I was able to attend art school at the Maryland Institute College of Art, and then got my masters from Hunter College in NYC.

My painting practice doesn’t pay all my bills but each year the financial return is a little greater. The real rewards I get are the community of artists with whom I get to engage and the collectors who connect to my work. My experience of painting has not changed so much from when I was younger. Painting and the making of art is a way of connecting to a deeper authentic place in myself. My sharing of that authentic artistic space can create the opportunity for the viewer to have a similar experience of their own. In that moment my personal experience transcends me and becomes meaningful for someone else.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?

I like to describe my work as process oriented color based abstractions. I use specially fabricated plexi squeegees to rake layers of paint across a canvas. This process results in imagery that can look like static on old cathode ray TVs or like wave designs from Japanese wood block prints. The paint is thinned out with mediums to make it move easily across the canvas and also to make it more translucent. This allows for light to penetrate the various layers of paint and creates an optical effect that has to be experienced in person to fully appreciate.

My focus lately has been on pushing the physical limits of my painting practice to make more dynamic works. Also, I just want to make more large works. The process by which I make my paintings has certain physical constraints, so it’s been a process learning to scale up the marks while keeping the compositions interesting.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

Running an art studio is running a business. That’s a concept I wish I had taken seriously earlier in my career. An artist doesn’t need an MBA but art made in my studio doesn’t sell itself. Over the years I’ve acquired basic business management skills like creating inventory, tracking sales and loans, and generating contracts. Budgeting both my time and finances is critical as well. I can’t make work in my studio if I don’t properly allocate either of those necessities. Communication has been the skill set that ties this all together. Being able to articulate my intentions is invaluable to creating proposals or getting collectors excited about my work. It’s necessary for crafting a curatorial statement or working out the details of my ideas with a fabricator.

What is the number one obstacle or challenge you are currently facing and what are you doing to try to resolve or overcome this challenge?

I mentioned isolation earlier, and that’s still a challenge for me. When making art, it’s just me and the materials in the studio. It can be lonely. Like so many other artists, I can be my own worst critic. If I don’t prioritize staying connected with other artists and arts professionals, those feelings of loneliness, isolation and doubt can lead to creative hurdles that prevent me from working. This is especially true when exploring new processes, or attempting more ambitious projects. These challenges are similar to those other working artists face in their careers. The accountability and encouragement to be found in our peers carries us all through difficult times.

Contact Info:

Image Credits

Photography by Eren Johnson

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