paintings3

Not only does Jake Watling's environment shape his fears but his artwork as well. This series of drawings, paintings, and sculpture depicts his fears, both large and small; some stem from the hardships of urban life, others specifically from life in the Bay Area. Similarly, this series is created largely from used materials found in the local urban landscape and is inspired by Watling's North Oakland neighborhood.

Watling utilizes a graphic style and bright color palette, inspired by the hand-painted signage, simple storefront advertising, and crude graffiti found in his local environment. What better setting to display these works created from used materials and inspired by the local environment than Buzz Gallery transformed by Watling into a used car lot replicating the lots of Oakland's nearby Broadway Auto Row.

Jake Watling is an art director for a local publishing firm and has exhibited his artwork in Minneapolis, New York City, Oakland, San Francisco, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. He received his BFA from the College of Visual Arts in St. Paul, Minnesota and now lives in Oakland, California with his wife and dog.