We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Jemal Diamond. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Jemal below.

Jemal, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

I was on a long phone call with a friend one day. I often doodle when I’m on the phone. I had won a small contest with Sharpie.com, and they’d sent me a large 36-pack of colorful markers. They were laying around and I happened to grab a new canvas that was still wrapped in cellophane to doodle on. I was engrossed in the phone call for some time, and when I hung up I looked down and I’d drawn a wonderful abstract figure and I was seeing it for the first time. I’d made it without even noticing, my focused mind completely in the phone conversation while my hands played with different colors as I enjoyed the smooth glide of the marker on the plastic while my focused mind was on my friend. It was that moment I discovered I was an abstract artist and my process continues to this day to recreate that mindful practice of letting go of my focused and critical mind and let it wander while I enjoy the act of improvisational creation.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I happen to talk my way into a job at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago. I worked there for over a decade and while working full-time, at night, I took classes and studied design, multimedia, fiber arts, video, bookmaking, and interactive installation. I graduated with an MFA in Visual Communication by using the tuition remission benefit of being a staff member. It was a ten year art education. While I was in school, I’d bring my drawings and paintings to my friends and ask, “What would you title this?” By expanding the typical question from ‘What do you think?’ to ‘What would you title this?’ I ended up presenting an invitation for them to put their own mark on it by providing their verbalized interpretation of what they were seeing. That more active question provided me an opportunity to have a more in-depth conversation about the work. I could, in turn, ask them about that interpretation and how they came to it. Inevitably, they’d look up and ask, “That’s what it is, right?” Who was I to say, no? I replied YES and if that’s what they see, that’s what it is!

I began posting my work online in the early days of blogging and online art communities. To duplicate the experience I’d had with my friends I’d post the art work with only “Title me!” as the caption. Amazing, creative titles poured in and I began collecting all of them. It’s been over 20 years, with thousands of titles to my work. Whenever a work is shown, I refer to the catalog of crowd-sourced titles and select a unique title for each show. The next time the piece is shown, it might have a completely different title. I also select viewer-provided titles for all of my solo art shows.

I work out of my studio at Visual Philosophy in San Jose, California. We have monthly public art shows and open studios. I sell most of my work directly from my studio and my online store. I am a resident artist at KALEID Gallery in San Jose, where there is a rotating collection of my work for sale. I am a member artist of Works/San José, and participate in annual group art shows and events. I also show art through a program called Phantom Galleries that presents art shows in non-traditional art spaces around the San Jose and south-bay area.

I encourage everyone to connect with me on social media and leave me your creative titles! @thejemalshow.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

I want to make as much art as I can before I die.

I have an incessant desire to create and it drives me daily. However; I battle a constant negative thought pattern that discourages me from creating. Whether it’s ‘You’ll never be as good as the masters’ to ‘Nobody needs or wants your work.’ I have to work hard to quiet those nagging negative thoughts and allow that space for myself to create for the pure joy of creating. I allow myself to let go of the critical mind, be in tune with the textures and physical feedback from dragging a marking tool across a surface and letting my mind… go.

I encourage all artists at all levels to give themselves the gift of letting go and the space to create because they love creating not because of any outcome.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

When someone looks at my work, sees the invitation to title it, and I get to be present while watching their face as it lights up with ideas. That connection to other people through my work, is cherries on top of the whipped cream on top of the pie of making art.

Contact Info:

• Website: http://www.thejemalshow.com
• Instagram: @thejemalshow
• Facebook: @thejemalshow
• Other: TikTok: @thejemalshow

Image Credits

Stuart Rhodes @stuphotoart