Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Jamaal Eversley. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Alright, Jamaal thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Has your work ever been misunderstood or mischaracterized?
I would like to talk about how I have been misunderstood and mischaracterized throughout my life. Since grade school I was teased and made fun of for looking like Steve Urkel. 8 years of braces (proud of my gap tooth smile today), big bifocal glasses with the string attached (not much here has changed except cutting ties with the string) and high water jeans paired with a big fuzzy deep plum colored sweater from GAP (oh how I miss that sweater). A quintessential nerd. That was me throughout my youth into late adolescence and some would argue still now. The difference between now and then, is that I did not want to be labeled “nerd”. I didn’t want to be called Steve Urkel. I loathed going to school sometimes because I did not like what others saw in me or better put, I didn’t like how I saw myself. Perception has changed since then.
Jamaal, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I am an artist, I’ve embarked on a visual journey to create rich vibrant works of art that convey harmony between soothing and exciting colors. I use color schemes that engage and provide a visual balance to ease the mind or to foster a sense of agitation and chaos. It’s all about making bold color choices to capture attention, kindle emotions and evoke a response from the viewer. I strive to create unique color schemes of pattern and design that are universally recognizable and can be understood and accepted by different communities and cultures.
In a lot of my work you will consistently see an orange nerd motif known as Spencer Ward. Spencer not only represents the zany lovable nerd but also represents the Bold & Beautiful in all of us. The color orange represents boldness, youthfulness, strength and endurance. My art and lifestyle is about celebrating who you are, more so, who we are as people. Celebrating the gifts that each of us as individuals have. Whatever it may be, it’s meant to be celebrated. So when you see Spencer, see your gift within. My slogan is “Be Happy. Be Bold. Be You.” They all lead into one another.
When it comes to my artistic process, it is a blend of analytical and methodical thoughts (an archetypal nerd) mixed with the magic that is intuition. When creating pieces centered around the nerd, Spencer Ward, I think of the message I want to convey. I then do a lot of reading, museum walking and music listening. With a little bit of meditation an idea surfaces which I map out using colored pencils and paper. I then transfer that to canvas allowing for new ideas to take paramount and enhance the original idea. This is the intuitive part that takes over because as I see it, creativity was being cultivated the entire time during my intense research process (books, museums, music) waiting to surface at the right moment.
We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?
I had to unlearn the notion of IMPOSTER SYNDROME.
For several years after graduating from business school and living life as an artist, struggling financially, trying to turn my artist profession into a business, I would find myself in the financial district hanging with my college friends and their coworkers. Talks of how the day went in the office and how the money was made was typical conversation which I could understand but couldn’t relate to. Until it was my turn to talk and tell them who I am and what I did. I was confident about what my name was and came out strong with a firm handshake and eye contact but would meagerly state “I am a salesman”??? I would go home dwelling on this moment, asking myself why did I say that instead of saying I am an ARTIST! I would continue to relive this moment for years whenever I was out meeting new people. I had a gift and I knew who I was however it took me years to accept me for me. Back then, I would tell you that it was because of the incessant chatter from others on who I should be but honestly it was the chatter in my head telling my heart who I should be.
So my journey as an artist has truly been a journey of acceptance of who I am. Being proud of it. I’ve learned full acceptance of self is a Bold move in life. I am thankful to learn that along my journey so far.
Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?
Feeling stiffled and artistically stuck during the height of the Pandemic in 2020 I decided to read “The Accidental Creative” by Todd Henry as well as took an online class class by Barbara Oakley entitled “Learning how to learn”.
Combined with a lot of reflection, I learned the valuable lesson of accepting creative blocks and using that time to discover, create and transform anew. That time and those readings help[ed me learn about a new form of acceptance. Accepting that creative blocks are all part of the creative process. When a creative block is happening, see it as the opportune time to research and get inspired. At that time, I was reading, listening to music, walking around the museum (when they finally reopened and was socially distanced)…and taking that 25 minutes to just focus and create after. Repeat. Creative ideas will start to form unconsciously in your mind. When they begin to surface, seize the moment! Those become the eureka moments.
Several powerful community inspired art shows stemmed from this time due to that. Real F.R.I.E.N.D.S in September 2020 and This Is America in February 2023
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @sirjayevs
- Twitter: @sirjayevs
Image Credits
Nikolai Alexander Geena Matuson