Jefferson Say

Jefferson Say was born in West Africa in 1982 and as a child emigrated with his family to the United States. Say attended a private school in North Carolina and excelled in art, discovering his unknown artistic talents for the first time. At age 12, a teacher noticed his art skills and gave him extra work to do at home. Say also found inspiration from TV personality, Bob Ross, and was determined to never miss an episode.

Say continued his art education in high school, and quickly became the instructor's assistant during class. During his college years at the Art Institute of Atlanta, Say's painting skills took a different direction as AIA only offered digital painting classes. He quickly dove into this new world of art expression; he learned to paint digitally. The knowledge he gained from digital painting carried through to his original hand paintings. He explains, "Creating harmony with colors in my original paintings was something I took from my digital painting years." Say graduated from AlA in 2004, with a degree in Media Arts and Computer Animation.

Say currently resides in Atlanta, Georgia where he continues to enjoy digital animation. However, he has also immersed himself into the world of highly detailed paintings. He clarifies, "It calms my inner being. The work I do reflects my emotions of my place in the world around me as seen through the eyes of others." Say's series "Foreign Lands" is based on the juxtaposition of contrasting elements. Opposing entities create interest, leading the viewer to wonder how these forces are coexisting. Aside from the visually appealing aesthetics, the viewer must ponder the interactions taking place in the scene.

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