hidell brooks gallery is thrilled to be having a solo exhibition for north carolina native herb jackson. after a long break not showing in the area herb jackson is looking forward to coming home. the show will have 25 new paintings painted over the last few years. in more ways than one this exhibition is coming full circle for hidell brooks. we have known herb as a friend and loved his work for almost 30 years.

throughout herb jackson's childhood he was a regular at the north carolina museum of art in raleigh and won his first award for art in a juried exhibition there in 1962, as a teenager. he received his undergraduate degreefrom davidson college and three years later he earned his master's degree in fine arts from the university of north carolina at chapel hill. in 1969, while finishing up his graduate studies, jackson began teaching at davidson. he soon became the chair of the art department which he held for 16 years. he retired from teaching in 2011. jackson's work is now in more than 80 collections including the british museum in london and the brooklyn museum in new york city. in 1999, herb jackson was given the north carolina award by the governor. this is the highest civilian honor bestowed by the state.

herb jackson's paintings are built up in many layers which are scraped off as they are being applied. shapes and marks come and go as the painting develops to a hundred or more layers. the final outcome is the result of a process of discovery similar to the life experience itself. he has used holographic pigment in quite a few of the new paintings.

"to require that an image, to be a bearer of content, must be recognizable is to suggest that there is no form to the unknowable."

- herb jackson

holographic pigment

this material is a finely controlled particle that is manufactured from a 12 micron clear synthetic that refracts light depending on angle of incidence from the viewer, allowing for a full spectrum of color from a single clear particle- much like how the “fire” reflects out of a diamond or crystal. this phenomenon deals with an area of physics known as total internal reflection, or internal angle of reflection. unlike glitter that is made by coating a film with a fugitive dye this material passed archival light fastness testing and should not degrade over time. this material was very hard for the pigment producer to manufacture and they only produced this for a short period limiting the supply.

herb jackson in his studio in davidson, nc

the solo exhibition of new paintings by herb jackson is up through the end of april. all new paintings are on our website under herb's artist's tab. herb jackson will be present during the opening this friday, april 7th from 6-8 pm. please call the gallery if you have any further questions.