A Closer Look

Jason Bailey's paintings invite viewers to slow down and see the beauty that everyday life in Indianapolis has to offer. Every month, City Gallery at the Harrison Center exhibits work that celebrates urban Indianapolis. Titled A Closer Look, Bailey's artwork features scenes from Old Northside, Monument Circle, Fountain Square, and many other familiar places. 

Whether working in the studio or en plein air, Bailey's attention to detail in his painting practice offers a deeper look at places that might otherwise go unnoticed around Indianapolis. The 18 oil paintings exhibited in A Closer Look are unified by the sense of light that Bailey seems to be chasing. The painterly surfaces all capture the constantly changing nature of everyday life, from day to evening, from evening to night, and the changes in weather and seasons. 

Bailey uses his impasto brushstrokes to create a rich sense of atmosphere in his work. The dark blues in String Lights capture the depth of nighttime, drawing the viewer in towards the small moments of brightness like a moth to a flame. Similarly, in Night Lights and Night Stroll, Bailey is less concerned with viewers being able to place where the scene is set than with evoking what it feels like to be out in Indianapolis at night. 

In Reflections of the Past, the red paint of the traffic lights casts hazy halos in the sky, then seems to flow down the surface. Bailey's use of oil paint perfectly renders the feeling of a puddle's reflection. 

Each piece in A Closer Look offers viewers an opportunity to reminisce about the hidden beauty all around them in the everyday aspects of their city, and invites them to slow down and reflect on how everyone can find something special in the mundane.