About the Artist

ARTISTS BIO:

Joshua Clay was born on a cloudy February day in 1983. He is a fine artist in the purest sense of the word, seeking perfection in every aspect of his craft. The work that Clay creates some would label Illustrative, Lowbrow or even as Pop Surrealism, but to him, it’s his voice in its purest form, untainted by established expectations of what “Fine Art” should look like.

Joshua was destined to become an artist, choosing pencil and paper over toys and technology. Throughout his high school years Clay found himself consumed by the act of painting creating over fifty original works and several large scale murals. Clay originally attended the Illinois Institute of Art Chicago following High School and later transferred to the College for Creative Studies to pursue his love for illustration. Following college Joshua relocated to sunny Los Angeles where he apprenticed under artist, Blaine Fontana. In under 2 years of living and working as a fulltime fine artist Clay found himself immersed in the emerging Los Angeles new contemporary art movement.

These days Clay spends his time tucked away in his Chicago studio drawing, painting, and perfecting his craft. With four successful solo exhibits and dozens of group exhibits worldwide, Clay has been busy making quite a name for himself. In addition to having his work featured in several books and magazines in recent years, Clay has also caught the attention of the music industry creating artwork for bands including Nine Inch Nails, Linkin Park, Gym Class Heroes and Fall Out Boy. Joshua Clay is a name you’ll be seeing again.

Solo Gallery Exhibits

July 2008 – “Un Autre Monde” – ThinkSpace Gallery / Los Angeles, CA

March 2008 – “The Midnight Parade” – Distinction Gallery / San Diego, CA

July 2007 – “Shadows” – ThinkSpace Gallery / Los Angeles, CA

October 2006 – “Leave the Mystery Behind” – {Open} / Long Beach, CA

September 2004 – “An Intimate Journey” – Three Pines Gallery / Cross Village, MI

Select Group Exhibits

Apr09 – “Duality” 2 person exhibit – AdHoc Gallery / NYC

Jan08 – “Stan Lee Tribute Show” – Gallery 1988 / Los Angeles, CA

Nov07 – “Tales from the Wonderland II” – Dorothy Circus Gallery / Rome, Italy

Feb07 – “Elevation” – Limited Addiction Gallery / Denver, CO (Feb)

Feb07 – “Dark Hearts and Broken Vows” – Strychnin Gallery / NYC

Dec06 – “3way” – Distinction Gallery / San Diego, CA

Dec06 – “Naughty or Nice” – Thinkspace Gallery / Los Angeles, CA

Nov06 – “Supernal” – Compound Gallery / Portland, OR

Jul06 – “Bergamot Invasion II” – Copro Nason Gallery / Santa Monica, CA

Freelance Work

December 2008 Fall Out Boy, Scramble Visuals
-Animated Characters and Backgrounds for the “Americas SuiteHearts” Music Video

May 2008 – Gym Class Heroes, Atlantic Records / Fueled By Ramen
-Created album cover and booklet artwork

Early 2008 – Linkin Park, Band Merch
-Projekt Revolution Limited Edition silk screened tour posters

March 2007 – 42 entertainment: “Year Zero” Nine Inch Nails viral campaign.
-Created murals in London England and Hollywood, CA with a small team of artists

February 2003 – Dr. Necah Furman (Pulitzer Prize Nominated Author)
-Children’s Book Illustration “Lucy Swan’s Circle”

Unpaid Internship

Blaine Fontana Studios – www.blainefontana.com – Personal Artist’s Assistant / Long Beach, CA
-Helped with both studio projects and Gallery installations and Murals

Non-profit

“Fashioning Hope” — The Glue Network / http://www.thegluenetwork.com/
- Created a mural with a small team of artists at the Magic clothing convention in Las Vegas to raise money for StandUp for Kids.

“Green 4 Green” – The Glue Network / http://www.thegluenetwork.com/
- Created a mural with a small team of artists at ASR San Diego to raise money to help the environment.

“The Freedom Project” – The Glue Network / http://www.thegluenetwork.com/
- Created a mural with a small team of artists at a charity event to raise money to help fight and prevent human trafficking.

Education

2002-2004 The College for Creative Studies – Illustration / Detroit, MI

2001-2002 Illinois Institute of Art – Media Arts and Animation / Chicago, IL

Media

Acrylics, Oil, Pen and Ink, Watercolor, Colored Pencil, Graphite, Sculpture and Photoshop