Meet local artist, comedian, chef and Downtown Phoenix advocate Jesse Perry, who is an Arizona native creating artwork in all media.
Perry began exploring art as a young child with his mother and he went onto study art throughout his early education continuing his studies in college graduating from Paradise Valley Community College with a degree in Fine Art and Art Marketing. For the last four years he has been busy refining his skills as a fine artist, a curator, as well as venturing into the exciting realm of public art. Perry puts no restrictions on his style, medium or size and works largely on commissions for both fine art and murals. He draws inspiration from fellow artists in Downtown Phoenix and having the pleasure of seeing new murals popping up throughout the city and knowing the person who created that work of art.
His artwork can be seen across the valley, with his first notable piece depicting a Cthulhu Sushi Chef that was located on the east facing wall at 3rd St and Roosevelt. He was then commissioned to repaint this mural with a new piece featuring a lounging rabbit surrounded by Nopals (or Prickly Pear cactuses) welcoming visitors to Downtown Phoenix. More of his work can be found at other local establishments including the FilmBar, Mother Bunch Brewery, Phoenix Public Market Café, and Zinnias at Melrose just to name a few.
Recently he completed “31 Days of Street Art” where he went out and put up tiny installations of street art hidden around midtown and downtown Phoenix that Perry wanted people to discover with the hopes that people would be inspired to look twice at our great city! Also Perry was chosen by the city of Mesa to create a wonderful new mural re-creating the Neon signs that once adorned old Marquee Drive-In in Mesa located on West Main Street utilizing historic photos of two neon signs, which the city asked him to meld together the two neon signs resulting in a wonderful big chicken perched on top of the restaurant sign.
He has been busy exhibiting his work at galleries around downtown including Practical Art, RAW Artists, the FilmBar, Downtown Phoenix Partnership Office and Shade Gallery at the MonOrchid. This past December Perry participated in a wonderful group invitational exhibition at Shade Gallery in the MonOrchid titled "Celebrity" where he exhibited three of his latest paintings showcasing a brilliant recreation of a few iconic celebrities RuPaul, Bill Murray and Disobey. His artwork has also been featured in numerous publications both online and in print including the Arizona Republic, Phoenix New Times, Localrevibe and YabYum Music & Art.
Still want to learn more about the talented artist Jesse Perry then visit his website at jesseperryart.com and be sure to follow him on Instagram at @mrdowntownphx for the latest art and news! *All Images courtesy and copyright of the artist Jesse Perry.
