Jedidiah Chavez
is an interdisciplinary artist based out of Portland,
Oregon. He holds a B.A. in Art History from the University
of Northern Colorado and an M.F.A. from the Vermont
College of the Fine Arts. He has shown widely in the
United States and is the current Art Editor of Gertrude
Press.
Artist Statement
I engage in an interdisciplinary
art practice that seeks to find relationships between
personal narrative, historical amnesia, and public
space.
aGAPe focuses
on the current affect surrounding the AIDS crisis.
Through the appropriation and distribution of the GAP’s
Red Campaign, I have sought to reinvigorate discourse
surrounding the AIDS crisis. Appropriated flyers have
been distributed in newspaper vending machines throughout
the country, simulating the New York Crimes Project
initiated by Gran Fury in the late 1980’s. Through
reenacting historical activist projects and tactics
within the context of contemporary media, I seek to
challenge current apathy and inaction while reinforcing
the need for activist based artistic practices.
I understand that
the AIDS crisis is a complex network of failed healthcare
systems, socioeconomic divisions, gender inequality,
and homophobia. My intent is to not rely on the age
old “artist as hero” myth but to simply
create inflammatory work that engages the viewer on
a level of questioning.
