J Fox

J Fox

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About J Fox

About J Fox

From a young age, I was encouraged to be creative; creative in writing, art, dancing and music. I always did drawings at home. I also loved to read and write and kept a journal since I was nine years old.

Although I loved physical activity, I grew up being very inner focused on my feelings and thoughts and found refuge there. I was a dreamer. Often my parents would snap their fingers to wake me out of some reverie. When young I wasn't particularly aware of my environment as I would imagine someone who is an artist would be. It was the inner world that caught my attention.

I did always love seeing art. Growing up in Manhattan until I was nine, and then living near the big city in northern New Jersey, my mother often took me to art museums and because of her artistic leanings, encouraged me to do art. As a teenager, I loved Miro, Klee, Kandinsky, Matisse and Picasso. Pictures that were vibrant and alive with a lot of color particularly appealed to me. As I grew older, I would take classes in art from time to time, but I never consistently immersed myself.

I studied literature and philosophy at NYU and ended up getting a a Master's degree in TESOL (Teaching English to speakers of other languages).

I grew up in the sixties: a time of great change: Bob Dylan and a myriad of folk singers like Joan Baez, Judy Collins, Richie Havens, Joni Mitchell, Carole King, and a whole bunch more were at their height. It was the time of protests against the Vietnam War, Civil rights demonstrations, dropping out and turning on... Ram Dass, Hari Krishna groups and a bit later, the Gay and Feminist movements. This was a time of great upheaval, creativity and experimentation.

The direction I went in post-College, traveling and post teaching English in New York City and California, was to get very involved in Buddhist Meditation. I gave myself wholeheartedly to working in meditation centers and doing a lot of meditation retreats. I took to meditation as a fish takes to water. Of course it was that inward focus again and the delight of expanded consciousness and in a sense relief from the world of complexity.

Since that time, I have spent more than 25 years devoted to living and working in a spiritual community. This continues to the present, now in a less formal way, but still the commitment is to transformation both in myself and with others as a collective endeavor to evolve - to bring a higher order of relationship into this world.

At some point in my life I realized, to my surprise, that I actually was a very visual person. For example I am very aware of what people look like, the changes in their facial expressions, how they walk and how light falls and effects what one is seeing. I see beauty in things that would not necessarily be considered beautiful, but it is the way the structure and light and colors come together.

I have always loved holding a pen in my hand and writing and from early on my notebooks at school were always filled with "doodles." When I was in College, for a birthday gift, I was given a sketch pad, a bottle of ink and an old-fashioned pen. Dipping the pen into ink meant I had to go very slowly and meticulously and from out of nowhere I started to create drawings that had character and really were - I see now - the early beginnings of what I am doing now.

A little more than four years ago, I started to seriously do artwork and over the last few years have compiled quite a collection of drawings. These have been a joyful, focused and meditative outlet for me. I really delight in the creative process, the unknown aspect of literally starting with nothing - no idea, no concept, no image before me and just moving my pen to paper to start.

In September 2012, I began a blog post with a good friend, shortly after my mom suffered a massive stroke, called "When the Table Turns" which are philosophical heartfelt essays on the care for our elderly moms. This site is another creative outlet for me, combining my love of writing, reflecting and an attempt to go beneath the surface of things to that which touches one deeply about the human spirit!

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J Fox

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Exhibitions

For the last three years, Judy has focused on creating a body of work that was the basis of her first show, "From Nothing to Something: Spirited Visions of a Whimsical World" at the J Fox art Studio in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. In addition several of her pieces have been shown at the Lenox Community Center, Lenox Library, and Stockbridge Town Hall. In October 2013, she will be showing her work at the Stockbridge Library with two other women artists.

J Fox Art Studio

In 2011, Judy decided to open her own working studio and gallery, not only to show her work, but also to host artists who are making fresh and authentic contributions. She envisions the J Fox Art Studio as a space that will give the opportunity for new artists to be presented and appreciated in the Berkshires.

 

   
an ElytraDesign