'Paint your reality': Local artist Jason Flack shares his story behind the art

A blue baseball cap with the word "ART" printed across the top and paint-stained khaki pants adorned local artist Jason Flack as he carefully set up a few of his works on easels in downtown Johnson City. The canvas paintings are bright with color, but no two share the same theme. Taking inspiration from artists he grew up to admire, Flack's pieces show bold colors and even bolder meaning, reflecting his viewpoint on the world around him. "It's very '90s," he said with a smile. "I'm very day-glow, very Nickelodeon-flavored, I guess you could say." Though he's been painting for more than a decade, Flack's affinity for art began at a young age — something he attributes to his love for comic books and attempts at emulating the world around him. "I was drawing very early," he said. "I have family from New York and California, and they would always know me as sort of the artsy cousin and the artsy nephew. They would bring back real show cards of Keith Haring and Jean Michel-Basquiat … which I was very, very young, but still I was exposed to (their) internationally known art very early." Now, his art reflects a conglomeration of inspiration from different artists. Though he feels as if his personal style is continually growing, artists he has been influenced by include Haring, Theodor Geisel (Dr. Seuss), Ed Roth and Genndy Tartakovsky. "It's all these names, and when I say their names, in my head I see their signature and I see their style," he said. "People say they see that in my work now, and I'm very thankful for that because I don't, I'm still working on that. I got my style from basically stirring up in my head and mixing all my favorite artists, the colors they used, the solar palettes they used, what topics they did or didn't do." Flack's dedication to painting also came after tragedies in his life. He experienced the unexpected death of his twin sister and a time of homelessness and loneliness after a close friend went to prison. However, once he finally found a small place to call home, Flack said he had a conversation with himself in the mirror. He started the process of self-forgiveness, pulled out a paint set given to him by his friend's mother, and picked up painting to stop the cycle of neglecting his talent. "I vowed to myself, and now that's enhanced even more, we're not wasting any more time," Flack said. "I'm going to at least try. I couldn't tell you the countless opportunities I just let pass. ... If I didn't pull that paint set out, if my friend didn't go to prison, if I wasn't homeless — all that had to happen." Flack said after that moment, he truly began pursuing art. Beginning with iconic figures and characters before broadening into local scenery, Flack said one of the pieces that "put him on the map" in Johnson City was a colorful piece featuring Main Street in downtown Johnson City. His inspiration came from a Crayola crayon box, blocking the scenery of Main Street into different colors similarly to the faux window on the crayon box to see the colored crayons within. From there, Flack's popularity grew. He began expanding his art into expressing his viewpoints on social and political topics, as well as creating works that reflect personal moments from his life. From doing murals, to selling individual pieces, to getting his work in local art exhibitions and galleries, Flack has become a staple artist in the region. One piece Flack recently completed was a portrait for the Black Heritage Trail, which depicts his intentional choice of bold colors and visuals of the community that reflect the past. He also completed filming to be featured in a PBS Appalachia documentary, and has had several works featured in assorted exhibits in the Fischman Gallery, Tipton Gallery and Reece Museum. Currently, a canvas titled, "Race! Race! Race! The Front of Freak-Out" is featured in the FL3TCH3R Exhibit, something he's participated in multiple times. Out of all the art he's created over the past decade, though, the piece that he considers a favorite would be a large canvas called "Grandaddies." Flack said not only does the piece hold sentimental value because it depicts his two grandfathers, but it shows how art can alter reality. "(It) is based off my two grandfathers that never got together," Flack said. "My sister and I were born to … division in the family. In art, you can paint your reality. If you want these people to get together, you can change your reality. I don't want to push my reality on you, but I can paint mine, and you can see something really bright and colorful and uplifting out of something that possibly was dark." Flack said as he continues to create pieces that reflect his ever-growing style and visualize his perception of the reality around him, the most rewarding part of what he does is reaching kids that are similar to the younger version of himself. He added he believes his art also has left an impact on the community through the energy it creates, inspiring thought and bridging gaps between people. "I'm not in this as a hobbyist," Flack said. "There's a difference between if you're commissioned and if you're convicted, and I'm convicted. … (The art) does all kinds of great things, especially when it's exposed, when it's accessible, when it's revealed — it's out."