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Summer Art Fridays: Artist James Zdaniewski

For our fifth weekly highlight in our Summer Fridays collaboration with ArtInfo, we chose the work of James Zdaniewski, whose drawing immediately reminded us of what it felt like to spring off a diving board and be suspended momentarily in the air. After checking in with Zdaniewski for the interview below, we found out that it was just that experience that inspired him to create the sketch, which will be turned into a mixed media collage.

Describe the piece you submitted to Summer Fridays.

I submitted the piece titled Six and Seven, a charcoal drawing. This is part of my next series of works inspired by the hype of the supposed Apocalypse coming in December 2012. Based on the idea of the seven seals that bring on the apocalypse, “Six and Seven” shows two children falling freely from the sky. From this drawing I will create a silkscreen to print the work on top of a base layer of acrylic and spray paint, currently in production, to finish the concept.

How does the piece relate to your memories of summer?

This reminds me of the innocence of jumping off a bridge or a dock into a lake, when you experience those few moments of letting go of your limbs and just accepting the feeling of weightlessness before you get baptized by the sudden smack into water.

Describe your process.

For this series, I’m approaching my process a little differently from my norm. I begin with lists and notes on ideas that turn into thumbnail compositions, and then a more solid sketch in preparation for a painting. With these I’m spending more time on the sketch concept, and adding the new base element layered into the final piece. I spend a few months on each painting in order to marinate in the process, so that I make wise choices with color and mark making.

How did you end up making art?

I always watched my older brothers draw and wanted to mimic that. I’ve drawn my entire life, which led me to graduate from an art school — Savannah College of Art and Design — and pursue my solo fine arts career. I studied animation, so I find inspiration in motion and ideas on time and space. I read a lot of quantum theory books, so a lot of crazy ideas and inspiration come out of that.

How has Tumblr helped you?

I use Tumblr as a sort of sketchbook to document my process and ideas. It allows me to continue to post images in-progress while keeping the finished pieces on my own portfolio site.

—See full article by Kyle Chayka here

In Good Company

That final metaphor may be more literal than you think, says artist James “DrZ” Zdaniewski, who scored a preemo role in helping evoke the original CBGB look inside local Meddin Studios.

“I recreated graffiti, tags, layered posters and stickers from archived CBGB photos,” he explains, noting he leveraged an old contact from Art Basel Miami to get stickers and posters original to the eras depicted in the film.

“Since they shoot out of order, they needed to transform the set from the original country bar to the later-years punk bar it’s famous for,” Zdaniewski says, “overnight and back again. For this, I created an almost ‘wallpaper’ to quickly put up over the ‘clean’ era set with layered practicals over top to create that realistic depth.”

Zdaniewski’s authentic interiors will follow English actor Alan Rickman throughout the Unclaimed Freight Productions film as he portrays club founder Hilly Kristal from the early 1970s to CBGB’s shuttering in 2006.

View full article here via – SavannahNow.com by Jason Kendall

A selection of works by the American artist James “DrZ” Zdaniewski, paintings done with acrylic layers and spray paint on canvas. Mixed technique and street art style influenced by the dreams and the environment that surrounds him, a negative reflection from the world, translated into a colorful and positive visual representation.

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Best Visual Artist - Dr. Z

Savannah’s premier multimedia artist, James “Dr. Z.” Zdaniewski, is closely linked to high-profile projects such as the recent (and strangely controversial) “Before I Die” mural and also works with the Savannah Urban Arts Festival.

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ShopSCAD has acquired 6 of my pieces which are on display this month during SCAD Style 2012.

Local Artist’s Work Purchased for SCAD’s Permanent Collection

SAVANNAH, Ga. – - October 25, 2011 – - Local artist and entrepreneur James Zdaniewski, aka DrZ, was recently honored with the purchase of two of his works for Savannah College of Art and Design’s permanent art collection. The works will be displayed in SCAD’s newly expanded Museum of Art which re-opens to the public on October 29.

A number of DrZ’s creations are currently on exhibition at Local 11ten, a popular restaurant located at 1110 Bull Street in Savannah.

The Erie, Pennsylvania native has several works entered in the Bombay Sapphire Artisan Series competition which searches the art world for the newest wave of emerging artists and seeks to discover what inspires them. Sponsored by Bombay Sapphire, Russell Simmons and the Rush Philanthropic Arts Foundation, the national search selects twenty of the finest emerging artists to compete for the top new artisan title at Art Basel Miami Beach. In its tenth year, Art Basel is the most prestigious art show in the Americas with more than 260 leading galleries from North America, Europe, Latin America, Asia and Africa taking part in the annual event.

As a SCAD graduate and multimedia artist living in Savannah, DrZ’s creations have been exhibited in prominent art venues throughout the United States. The majority of his work is a visual representation of negative ideas or events occurring throughout the world or in his immediate environment. DrZ works primarily with layered acrylic, spray paint, and screen printing techniques on canvas, but past projects have also included print making, installations, murals, and projected animations.

“I’m influenced by dreams, stream of consciousness and the quantum world of time and space all around us. I’m trying to provoke thought and wonder in this world that influences some to step back and realize what is really important in this life,” commented DrZ.
For more information, visit www.DrZisiLL.in.

CAPTION: DrZ’s (James Zdaniewski) 4 x 6 feet mixed media on panel “Diablito” is one of two pieces purchased by SCAD for its permanent collection. The piece will be on exhibit when SCAD’s new Museum of Art reopens to the public on October 29, 2011.

Our hometown of Savannah, Georgia was selected as a host for Fashion’s Night Out. With the help of The Creative Coast, Savannah Windows has partnered with businesses and residents along York Street, Broughton Street and Abercorn Street to create window installations celebrating the rich cast of characters from Savannah’s past and present.

Jake Hodesh, Jamie Bowerman, James Zdaniewski and Matt Hebermehlnoticed a relationship between Savannah’s storefronts with their glassed windows and wood trim and a picture frame.  They dreamed of transforming the windows by placing art behind them.  Hodesh suggests, “By placing art in this way, we further the intrinsic beauty of Savannah’s architecture. We celebrate its artists and we provide an alternate vision of our city and its people to our community.”

Curator, artist and co-conceiver Hebermehl lassos the support of The Creative Coast, its gallery and numerous local artists as they plaster the city with the faces of some of Savannah’s best known and some of Savannah’s lesser known -  all integral to the cultural and historical underpinning of life in this city.

Participating artists in this round include Matt Hebermehl,  Jose Ray,Katherine Sandoz, Alex Soto, Benjamin Stanley, Kellie Walker, Kay Wolfersperger, Troy Wandzel and James Zdaniewski (aka Dr. Z).

Artist statements, a peek at the works in progress and more information about each work can be found at http://savannahwindows.tumblr.com/.

Troy Wandzel
citizen advocate Tom Kohler
58″ x 38″
oil on primed paper mounted to plexi
august 2011

Shared from Katherine Sandoz