Mark Jager Returns to Show His Recent Works

The New Year will mark the return of an old friend to many in South Pasadena. Mark Jager, former resident and proprietor of an antique shop will be showing his recent paintings at SoPas Gallery of the South Pasadena Chamber of Commerce.

Jager is well known in the South Pasadena community as a recipient of a Historic Preservation Award for the redevelopment of 1040 Mission Street, where he ran his antique shop. It’s now the home of Mike and Anne’s Restaurant and Zinnia for Crafters.  For several years, Jager also harbored a not-so-secret identity as a painter. Since closing his shop on Mission Street and moving back East, Jager has been residing in Massachusetts in the full time pursuit of his muse. This exhibit will be his first showing of a group of paintings that reflect the inspiration of his New England environs. The show reveals the maturation of a style that has been developing in his work for several years.

Mark Jager: Faces and Places showcases Jager’s portraits of the characters encountered while painting landscapes “en plein air”, juxtaposed with the landscapes themselves. The paintins present a curious dialogue for the viewer, being in company with these other “recorded viewers.” But the real energy in this show is the ability of this artist to redefine painting in a personal style that pays homage to traditional art in subject matter and technique. The paintings honor the naive work of the folk artists and artisans whose works used to grace his antique shop, and do so with a personal style. The subjects in his paintings, rendered dreamlike by the artist’s choice of palette and sometimes odd context of objects, people, and environment, jar the contemporary viewer into a space and time that is both familiar and undefined. This ability to pull the viewer into the world of the painting - creating a sense of wonder - is what makes these works well worth visiting.

Mark Jager’s paintings will be on view until January 31, Tuesday through Friday from 10 to 5, or weekends by appointment. The gallery is located at 1121 Mission Street.

SoPas Gallery is located in the Chamber of Commerce at 1121 Mission Street, South Pasadena. Its purpose is to connect local artists with the community. The South Pasadena Chamber of Commerce strives to promote economic success and well-being by connecting business owners and operators with the community and the City in one of the most enduring “Small Town America” environments in Southern California. For more information about the Chamber, visit www.southpaschamber.com or call  626-441-2339