About the Artist

Jim Zellinger pays homage to a Midwestern constant, the semi-trailer, in his series of acrylic paintings. In each painting, Zellinger places a trailer center, often floating on unmarked yet active fields of color. He portrays the trailers and random elements in their environment – in bold, cheerful colors which contradict the isolation of the lone trailers, making them just a little cleaner than a rest stop, a little clearer than through a rearview mirror. Zellinger has a recurring personal connection with the semi-trailers that criss-cross the flat landscape of the Midwest. This new series of paintings embodies the various stages of Zellinger's feelings for the trailers. As we view them, we traverse through the awe he felt for semi-trailers as a child, to the invasion of them in an idealized environment that he felt for them as a young adult. Now we can see his renewed respect for the day-to-day presence of the drivers, their tools and the planar aspects that make up their lives.

Zellinger is originally from Knoxville, Iowa. He lived a large portion of his adult life in Minneapolis, and moved to upstate New York in 2001. He holds a B.A. in Economics from Hanover College, Hanover, IN and an M.B.A. from the University of Wales at Cardiff, Cardiff, Wales, United Kingdom.

Artist Statement

My work as an artist rests heavily on my Midwestern upbringing, which has left a significant mark on my character and interpretation of the world around me. Having traveled extensively, I am constantly comparing the common threads, rituals, customs and personality of my home with wherever I may happen to reside. As I continue to examine the modern Midwest, I would like to again address the constant and enduring images of this part of the country. As Grant Wood, Thomas Hart Benton and John Stuart Curry painted their interpretations of the central United States rural life and its humble qualities, I too would like to examine the themes and understated icons of contemporary Midwest living. I try to isolate the noise around items that draw my attention. I’ve placed the objects center and often on unmarked fields – to look at them in their own light and place them in the forefront of the viewer’s eye, portraying them as not too detailed or glorified but only as they are.