More About the Art

AJ Rojas is a self taught artist from Texas who utilizes multiple mediums and styles in his artworks. A rookie in the art world at the age of 38, AJ didn’t pick up his first brush and begin to paint until recently. It all began with an idea he had about visualizing common everyday objects out of the unique and irregular characteristics of broken pieces of limestone rock. While painting the objects he would see in the rocks, he began to unravel a mystery of unique proportions not only within the rocks he paints, but within himself and the artist he strives to be. With no formal art training or particular art style to grasp on to, AJ paints in search of clues to the mystery behind his art.

When painting his rocks, he begins by searching deep into the rocks surface to find what each rock represents to him. Sometimes the image is familiar and others it is completely abstract. While the familiar objects gain more attention at first sight, it was the abstract images that gave the most insight to the underlying mechanisms that bring forth the true power of his art. During this time he began to make connections between the rocks, his art, and the force behind Fractal Geometry at which AJ learned about during his days at Austin Community College.

Fractals are curves or geometric figures of which each part has the same characteristic as the whole. Realizing that these geometric figures existed in his rocks, he began to understand that by painting them, he was actually bringing them to life for all to see. It was this revelation that open AJ’s eyes to the healing powers behind fractals and why when he stares at his art it feels as if the art is physically giving something back.

It was at this time that AJ came across Jackson Pollock, his drip paintings, and the art of Abstract Expressionism. While researching Pollock AJ began to find connections between Pollock’s drip paintings and the fractals at which are present in his rocks. During this research it came to AJ’s attention that Pollock might have accidentally harnessed the power of fractals in his art, as the term Fractal and its definition hadn’t formally come about until around 1982.

With this knowledge in hand, AJ began to open his mind and his art to canvas paintings and Abstract Expressionism. AJ’s approach to canvas paintings differs greatly from his approach to painting rocks, however the finished pieces harness the same self similar attributes as the rocks. In order for this to occur AJ begins all of his canvas paintings by drawing the lines with unrehearsed natural flow from the movement of his hands, similar to the way Pollock moved with his entire body. Because the lines are drawn first, unlike Pollock who painted with the flow and movement from his body, AJ must tap into his deep seeded ability to handle and merge colors in order for each finished piece to comprise of the true power behind his art. All of AJ’s canvas paintings begin without a purpose or subject and either he finds it during the process or it comes about after the painting is complete.

As of right now AJ bounces back and forth between his rocks and canvas paintings. While also merging his multiple styles of figurative and abstract drawings into both mediums. His preferred choice of paint is oil because of its stability when interacting with the rocks. Although he has recently began to incorporate acrylics into his canvas paintings. As you can see from his works, AJ does not hold himself to any particular color pallet. He does this because he believes that any color can reside in any single painting as long as balance and symmetry exist between them.