Today we’d like to introduce you to Jim McKenzie.
Jim, please kick things off for us by telling us about yourself and your journey so far.
A lot of people know me for my character sculptures, fine art, and stop motion process videos, but behind the veils of Instagram, I’ve been directing animated commercials for the past ten years; creating characters, stories, and animations for some of the biggest brands around. I started working full time as a director and designer at Aardman Nathan Love, an animation studio based in New York, back in 2011. At the time I was also teaching animation and story telling at the School of Visual Arts. All I wanted to do was animate and create great commercial spots. As the years went by I began to discover the fine art world. I started to work on personal projects during my train ride to work; pieces that I could say were 100% my own and not brand related.
The discovery that I could apply my commercial skills to my own artwork was a tipping point for me. I began making artwork for gallery shows around the world, and as the demand for more art grew, it became more and more difficult to balance a full time job. It was then I had to make a decision to leave the animation studio and pursue my art full time.
I started making art process videos on Youtube, documenting how my sculptures were made. People seemed to enjoy the videos, and the sculptures depicted in them began to gain more recognition. Toy companies such as 3D Retro, and ToyQube created designer art figures of my characters, flying me out to China for toy signing events. It was such a surreal feeling to go across the globe and have people recognize you for your work.
Things were moving fast and it was time for a change of pace. As of last year (2018) I had moved from the East Coast to my new home in Burbank, California. My partner and I just had our first child. Having a newborn son really changes everything, especially being a stay-at-home father who is sculpting imaginary characters while simultaneously burping a small boy over his shoulder. In a strange way, the artwork that I once felt so passionate about almost feels a bit meaningless when I look at him.
Currently, I’ve been working on a few freelance commercials as well as a brand new mini solo art exhibition for one of my favorite galleries, Corey Helford Gallery here in LA. The show opens June 29th, 2019. As the deadline for the show pieces approaches, I have been racing to finish these new sculptures. Juggling my art deadlines, income, the livelihood of my son, and my personal life is a real balancing act. It sometimes feels like I’m playing chess with time, but I embrace the challenge to the fullest degree.
Can you give our readers some background on your art?
I really enjoy jumping between different mediums, sculpting, drawing, animating, film making; it just keeps things feeling fresh. There’s a wide range of visuals when it comes to my work and a lot of my pieces are very different from one another, but it’s the heart of each piece that cohesively binds them together.
To the naked eye my art may appear bright and cartoonish, but every piece is very personal. There is so much of myself in everything that I do, and sometimes I feel like I may be giving too much of it away, but when it comes down to it, the work is really for myself.
My most popular piece to date is a short film on YouTube titled, “The Scarecrow” which shows the step-by-step process of sculpting a character from initial sketch to a fully developed three dimensional piece. I shot the piece over the coarse of two years as I was sculpting. It has over 100 million views across all platforms, so evidently it’s what people know me for, although it’s not what I’m most proud of. I often wonder; Is this how Sisqo feels about the Thong Song?
What would you recommend to an artist new to the city, or to art, in terms of meeting and connecting with other artists and creatives?
I’ve made a lot of new friends from attending various art shows throughout the years. A great thing about LA is that there’s so many amazing art galleries in close proximity to one another. One of my favorite annual group shows is the Conjoined show curated by artist Chet Zar at Copro Gallery. It’s also the show that got me started in the art world so of course I’m a bit bias, but it’s really a fun time.
If you’re too much of an introvert for the ever-so-crowded gallery opening, you can still be apart of the online art community just by sharing your work on social media and following likeminded individuals. Nowadays it’s so easy to connect with artist and just about anyone via instagram (a blessing and a curse). I think it’s important for artists to put their work out there and manifest whatever future they aim to achieve, because it’s all very achievable.
What’s the best way for someone to check out your work and provide support?
My next upcoming show “The Art of Character” will be at Corey Helford Gallery in LA on Saturday, June 29th, 2019.
You can also support the work by watching and sharing my videos on youtube: Youtube.com/
Contact Info:
- Website: jimmckenzieart.com
- Email: jimmckenziesemail@
gmail.com - Instagram: instagram.com/
jimmckenzie - Facebook: facebook.com/officialjimmckenzie
- Twitter: twitter.com/jimmymckenzie
- Other: YouTube.com/JimMcKenzie
Contact Info:
- Website: jimmckenzieart.com
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: instagram.com/jimmckenzie
- Facebook: facebook.com/officialjimmckenzie
- Twitter: twitter.com/jimmymckenzie
- Other: YouTube.com/JimMcKenzie
Image Credit:
Jim McKenzie
Kim Newmoney – personal photo
Getting in touch: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
