Biography

Australia, b.1981
Jason graduated with a Bachelor of Visual Arts (Honours) from the University of South Australia in 2006. He has since had several solo exhibitions and exhibited in numerous group shows throughout Australia and abroad, including SafARI, an unofficial fringe event to the 2010 Sydney Biennial of Contemporary Art held at Firstdraft. In 2010, ArtBank commissioned three of Jason’s pieces to add to their collection. He has been a fianlist in the Tom Malone Prize for the past 3 consecutive years and recently had his work collected by the Art Gallery of Western Australia.

Since 2009 Jason has been producing an evolving series of light boxes that reflect space upon itself creating the illusion of a seemingly infinite void.

“The illusion in my work, at least initially, seems to prompt the viewer to wrestle with what the eyes ‘see’ and the mind ‘knows’, but it’s not this that motivates me. I’m more interested in evoking a desire within the viewer for the illusion to conquer, at least for a moment or two, what they know to be true, in order to reach towards something more powerful and more profound – to create without complete disorientation something magical, indefinable and unexplainable.”

Jason is interested in the ways in which people create meaning in their lives – how perception and choice
directly impact our reality. His work seeks to explore what it means to exist, inviting contemplation of the structures in which we live, physically and socially, and presenting an endless expanse of infinite possibility.

“I find the natural human instinct to explore and discover, not just in a physical sense, but also within the parameters of our own minds, a truly captivating characteristic and something unquestionably universal. I am most interested in creating work that will not merely be viewed, but experienced.”

EDUCATION

2007-2008       Bachelor of Education – Graduate Entry The University of South Australia

2006       Bachelor of Visual Arts – Honours The University of South Australia

2003-2005       Bachelor of Visual Arts Majors – Painting / Glass The University of South Australia / Bishops University, Canada

SOLO EXHIBITIONS

2019

New Work, MARS Gallery, Melbourne

2018

Spatial Acuity, Madison Gallery, Solana Beach, California USA

2017

Jason Sims | Built Space, MARS, Windsor

2015

The Collections Project, Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide

2014

New Works, MARS Gallery, Melbourne
Timelines, MARS Gallery, Melbourne

2013

Fragment, The Cat Street Gallery, Hong Kong
The Space Between, Hugo Michell Gallery, Adelaide
Beyond, MARS Gallery, Melbourne

2012

Simulacra, Sabbia Gallery, Sydney
Nowhere, Aeon Arts, Syndicate Gallery, Sydney

2011

BlackBox, Gaffa – Rocks Pop-up Gallery, Sydney
Present in Absence, AP Bond Aboriginal and Contemporary Art, Adelaide

2010

Suspend, Gallery 139, Adelaide

GROUP EXHIBITIONS

2020
Tom Malone Prize 2020, Art Gallery of Western Australia, Perth
London Art Fair, ARTITLEDcontemporary, London UK

2019
Beyond Borders, Unit London, London UK
PAN Amsterdam, ARTITLEDcontemporary, The Netherlands
Sydney Contemporary, MARS Gallery, Sydney NSW
Art Market San Francisco, Madison Gallery, San Francisco, California USA
KunstRAI Amsterdam, ARTITLEDcontemporary, The Netherlands

2018

Spatial Acuity, Madison Gallery, San Diego, CA
Curiouser & Curiouser, Bathurst Regional Art Gallery, Bathurst NSW
PAN Amsterdam, ARTITLEDcontemporary, The Netherlands
BOAA – Biennale of Australian Art, Art Gallery of Western Australia, Ballarat, Victoria
Sydney Contemporary, MARS Gallery, Sydney
Tom Malone Prize 2018, Art Gallery of Western Australia, Perth
Art Central, MARS Gallery, Hong Kong
Imagine, Gippsland Art Galery, Sale, Victoria
London Art Fair, ARTITLEDcontemporary, London UK

2016

Incandescence, Grace Cossington Smith Gallery, Sydney

2015

2015 Patternation, Hazelhurst Regional Art Gallery, Sydney
Sydney Contemporary, MARS Gallery, Sydney
Affordable Art Fair, The Cat Street Gallery, Hong Kong
MARS Pop Up, MARS Gallery, Melbourne
Tom Malone Prize 2015, Art Gallery of Western Australia, Perth

2014

Melbourne Art Fair, MARS Gallery, Melbourne
Young Collectors, Hugo Michell Gallery, Adelaide
Affordable Art Fair, The Cat Street Gallery, Hong Kong

2013

Signal 8 Summer Show, The Cat Street Gallery, Hong Kong
Affordable Art Fair, The Cat Street Gallery, Hong Kong
Tom Malone Prize 2013, Art Gallery of Western Australia, Perth

2012

Signal 8: STORM, The Cat Street Gallery, Hong Kong
Tom Malone Prize 2012, Art Gallery of Western Australia, Perth

2011

Refraction, Gaffa Gallery, Sydney

2010

Safari, First Draft Gallery, Sydney

2007

Adelaide Helpmann Academy Graduate Exhibition, Drill Hall, Adelaide

2006

Graduate Exhibition, SASA Gallery, University of South Australia

2005

Over and Out, Bishops Gallery, Bishops University, Lennoxville, Canada
If I Could Touch the Sky, Liverpool St Gallery, Adelaide

2004

Seriously, University of South Australia

2003

Foundation, University of South Australia
A4 Play, University of South Australia

SELECTED AWARDS

2015

Winner, The Advertiser Contemporary Art Prize, SALA Festival
Project Grant, Arts SA
Finalist, Tom Malone Glass Prize

2014

Winner, People’s Choice Award, City of Hobart Art Prize
Finalist, City of Hobart Art Prize
Finalist, Kirra Illuminating Glass Award

2013

Finalist, Tom Malone Glass Prize

2012

Project Grant, Arts SA
Jump Mentorship, Youth Arts Queensland, supported by Australia Council
Finalist, Tom Malone Prize
Finalist, Alice Prize

2011

Finalist, Tom Malone Prize

2010

ArtStart Grant, Australia Council for the Arts