Local artist featured at the South Bend Museum of Art

SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Jason Cytacki grew up in South Bend, attended Indiana University South Bend for his undergraduate work followed by completing his MFA at the University of Notre Dame.

Cytacki’s work focuses a critical eye on the much-romanticized period of the American Frontier and its continued place in the popular imagination. Epic western landscapes of the 19th Century fed audiences’ desires for hope of an American Utopia, just as the heroic cowboys riding in to the sunset from 1950s cinema lured a new audience into longing for a simpler time. While inaccurate and inflated, these iconic images have become deeply entwined with the American perception of self.

“By constructing miniature dioramas of western landscape out of cardboard and then meticulously rendering the minute details in oil paint I aim to subtly subvert the hallmarks of this genre,” the artist said. “By detailing even the creases and corrugation of the cardboard, I instead highlight the fabricated nature of these culturally constructed images, calling their ‘authenticity’ into question.

“My interest lies in the tension between western art’s representation as both myth and reality, reflected in its often-ambiguous relationship with authenticity. By striving to both affirm and subvert our belief in these larger than life constructs I hope to redraw the mythic contours of our national identity to accommodate a more complete, truthful and tragic portrait.”

Jason Cytacki is an Assistant Professor of Painting at the University of Oklahoma. Jason earned MFA from the University of Notre Dame in 2011, and now lives and works in Norman, Oklahoma. His paintings examine the American character and its construction through history, popular culture and mythology. Utilizing characters and images drawn from popular culture, he explores the way Americans view themselves and their country.

His recent work has dealt extensively with exploring Frontier mythology, in particular its continued importance in the popular imagination. He has been exhibited regularly and is represented in a variety of collections.