Review: James Jessop's Beauty and the Beast at High Roller Society

By tikichris Last edited 168 months ago
Review: James Jessop's Beauty and the Beast at High Roller Society

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Photography by Chris Osburn

James Jessop paints enormous and vibrant works of art. From transcribed B-movie posters, sleazy 1960s paperback covers, and 1980s New York subway graffiti, his fixation on pop culture's often carnal undercurrents results in a captivating style that amplifies and examines the absurdities of archetypal relationships portrayed in some of mass media's trashier genres.

His latest offering is, Beauty and the Beast, a series of “massive spoof horror paintings” (and one limited edition five colour screen print). King Kong, Planet of the Apes, the Wolf-Man, romance novels … they're all fodder for Jessops' broad stroked, street style creations. Jessop reckons his "whole life has been mixing up graffiti with high art" and wants to make paintings that have a “huge impact”. His pieces are certainly huge; we suggest having a look for yourself to determine their impact.

Beauty and the Beast runs until the 24th of April at the fledgling and wonderful East End gallery, High Roller Society (10 Palmers Road, E2 0SY) which is open Thursday to Saturday from 1pm-7pm or by appointment. For more details, visit the gallery online at www.highrollersociety.co.uk.

Last Updated 23 March 2010