Pareidola: A one man group show

In this quietly expansive show, lifelong artist and Austinite Jon Eric Narum presents work from his three creative identities: The Sky Guy, Juan Diego Nerumski, and Hercules da Vinci, each with their own distinct way of seeing and making. What began as a practical way to separate his work has grown into something more personal: a way of embodying different creative impulses through invented personas. These characters now have their own imagined stories, beliefs, and gestures, shaped by Narum’s background in theater and his ongoing interest in how we define ourselves.
First came The Sky Guy, the artist’s persona whom Narum embodies; he employs realism to paint expansive skies full of hidden faces and forms. Juan Diego appeared next, a more reserved and private persona, who explores abstraction through a meditative lens expressed in a vibrant, saturated palette and smooth gradients. The final character, Hercules da Vinci, is perhaps the most eccentric of the bunch. Despite his hulking frame, he hides beneath the floorboards of Narum’s studio. When Narum isn’t looking, Hercules steals his discarded studio rags, turning them into textured, surprising compositions. Despite their differences, each of Narum’s characters is connected by pareidolia, as faces and figures rise from abstraction in a masterful use of color and form.
Narum’s practice reflects on how art can become a kind of performance, not in the sense of pretending, but of stepping fully into different corners of oneself. By giving each style its own voice, history, and even body, Narum doesn’t just allow himself to paint differently; he gives those differences room to breathe, to evolve, to matter. These aren’t just stylistic experiments; they’re lived perspectives, shaped by distinct emotional and creative logics.
​
“Pareidolia” invites us to consider what becomes possible when we stop asking our work, or ourselves, to be just one thing. Maybe identity in art isn’t something to pin down, but something we expand into when we are open to all aspects of who we are and can be.
​
Closing Reception: October 4th, 2025
Gallery Hours: Open by appointment – contact bolmartsmarketing@gmail.com