Three Things You Should Know About Jay Heikes

1. Jay Heikes relies upon natural processes like rust and oxidation as much as the manual processes that he inflicts upon his materials. He told Art in America regarding his large metal works that “the surface of the sculptures are the corrosion of two metals, rusting at one time but also oxidizing,” and that “depending on the humidity of the room, [the color] of the sculpture can go a little greener, or if dryer, a more gray, rust color.”

2. The focus on the object and materiality evident in his work is a reflection of his dissatisfaction with the participatory and performance trends in contemporary art. He says: “I feel we’re sort of on trend to short change the art object...We’re not giving its due and I want to challenge that a little bit.”

3. His work can be found in the collections of the New Museum and the Walker.