Jamieson Michael Flynn was born in 1978 into an Irish Catholic family on the South side of Chicago. In 1987 his family relocated to South Florida, where Jamieson and his two younger sisters have lived for the last 20 years. His father was a prosecutor for the state for many years and his mother is director of a breast cancer institute. A percentage of any sales of Jamieson’s work are donated to breast cancer research. It’s a humble family that instilled many values, beliefs, and a sense of morality in him under a religious framework.
Religion was never forcibly instituted on his day-to-day life growing up but it was prevalent. He went along with the church and most of the schooling as a young man, but Jamieson was always resistant to the commands and subjective values that came along with organized religion. To him it did not make sense to live by another persons, or another group’s idea of morality. Though conversely, the stories, the mythologies, and the epic scale to which these concepts influenced the masses fascinated him.
Jamieson attended Florida State University where he studied Fine Arts with a concentration in drawing. Later transferring to Florida Atlantic University, he took some additional drawing classes but ultimately would earn a degree in Art History, studying under Dr. David Courtney. The history of art offered Jamieson many new concepts and aesthetics before unknown to him in any cerebral way. Mainly, the influential periods for Jamieson are the Medieval, and the High Renaissance. Surrealism and the modern eras have their place under his influences as well but in many ways, primarily from a conceptual standpoint. As can be seen in the depth of detail in his imagery and the intensity with which he produces it.
Working primarily with ink, Jamieson strives to control a permeate medium. There is no erasing, no going back, only forward. Usually beginning with little or no preliminary sketching on the piece itself, the work essentially takes on a life of its own, growing and evolving from a controlled form of chaos, into an intense dynamic scene. Often, Jamieson works within religious and mythological themes, narratives, and allegories but recently, he began working on a series of natural scenes, “automatic abstractions” involving music and color. This is an incisive departure since almost all of his serious work until now has been done in black, white and gray.
Visually and artistically, the primary influences for Jamieson include Michelangelo merisi de Caravaggio, Albrecht Durer, Salvador Dali, H.R.Giger, M.C, Esher, Ralph Steadman and Jackson Pollack. Also, Celtic and other ancient aesthetics have a growing influence in his more recent works. Blending classical themes with an illustrative, and warped visual layout is a resounding concept of Jamieson’s work. It is the combination of two entirely different stylistic programs into one aesthetic compound.
While in college, Jamieson was also introduced to new literature and philosophies. Authors such as Jack Kerouac, John Dewey, Jean-Paul Sartre, Friedrich Nietzsche among others greatly interested him. Both their experiences and philosophies assisted him in his study of life, and of art. Developing his own ontological system, he has etched out some peace, art, and humanity for himself whilst surrounded by a world of chaos. All these concepts have helped direct and illustrate Jamieson’s sought after aesthetic and have shaped him as an autonomous person living for, and living through his Art.
Very recently, Social Deformity, the duel exhibition with fellow artist Alexandra Klimek was launched in Boca Raton Florida. Jamieson’s artwork broke out into the world with great acclaim and success. It was the largest collection of his artwork in one venue to date. He has recently moved back to Chicago to pursue his career in Art. Chicago, packed with numerous museums, art districts, and art galleries will be the center of his next phase in life. It is a new millennium and the world is in desperate need of something novel, something both artistic and important. His intention is to be a part of that change, and he intends to carve his name into the history of art back home in Chicago.