Press Release: My First Exhibition

The following press release was written by the one & only Midnight Grim because there is actually nothing she can’t do.🖤

TLDR: Spring Break Jake makes illustrative abstract art with a message. Come celebrate!

WHEN: Friday, February 3rd, 2023 from 5pm - 8pm (full show Jan. 24 - March 24)

WHERE: The Annex: A Scalehouse Project (550 NW Franklin Ave, Bend, OR 97703)

WHY: Because he only has one first art show ever!

Spring Break Jake to Exhibit First Solo Show "Beneath the Waves"

After completing Scalehouse's inaugural Patricia Clark Artist Residency, artist Jake Kenobi will be exhibiting his first solo show. This body of work, entitled "Beneath the Waves," uses macabre imagery contrasted by bright, almost tropical colors to explore ideas about masculinity and personal growth while also addressing stigmas around mental health issues. As an artist who has personally dealt with these themes for most of his life, Jake has a unique perspective that he wants to share with others through his art.

The opening reception for "Beneath the Waves" will be a part of Downtown Bend’s First Friday Art Walk on February 3rd from 5-8pm at The Annex: A Scalehouse Project. The full show runs from Jan. 24 - March 24, and for more information, please visit www.scalehouse.org/annex. We hope to see you there!

The work encourages the viewer to practice radical vulnerability in their day-to-day lives, as well as the acceptance of others’ vulnerability, about the all-too-often unspoken depths of the endless sea in our skulls. While each piece speaks to the broader human condition, it is the hope that these messages could show even one person that there are more empathetic ways of existing that are based in love instead of the greed, power, and control that maintain our present systems.

The Patricia Clark Studio was created in 2022 to honor Pat’s legacy and her original vision of Scalehouse by providing free studio space to working artists, a space for arts education programming, and a place to remember Pat. The Patricia Clark Studio and Scalehouse Gallery aim to connect audiences to boundary-pushing ideas, the creative practice, experiences, and expressions through direct access to artists. Scalehouse Gallery is the home to the contemporary art space presenting bold, new work by artists representing a broad range of identities and perspectives which might not otherwise be seen in Bend.