Biography
Jerry Atkins’s extensive work as a sculptor is deeply rooted in his ideas about the human psyche and his own sense of self. As a young man, his interest in science and Freud led to a career in psychiatry. He completed his under-graduate studies in Chemistry at Rutgers University in 1961 and later received a medical degree from the New York University School of Medicine and a certification in psychoanalysis.
All the while, Atkins’s creative interests were a source of fulfillment. When uninspired by his course work as a medical student, he often skipped class to attend pottery workshops, honing his talent for sculpture. His formal artistic studies began at the McNay Art Institute in San Antonio, Texas, in 1970, where he continued to learn ceramic technique. After returning to New York, Atkins set up his practice as a psychoanalyst and took a studio space in Woodstock, NY.
Atkins says that he tunes into his dark thoughts as the basis for his work. He expresses his vision through simple, abstracted human and animal forms that exist mostly in states of physical or psychological distress. His subjects are stripped of detail and reduced to their most basic elements--eyes, mouths, heads, and torsos. Atkins draws the viewer’s attention away from specific details and instead emphasizes their emotional weight through their poses and body language.
Atkins has been represented by the Kornblatt Gallery in Washington DC, and, in New York, by The Roko Gallery, Art Latitude Gallery, and The Kraushaar Galleries, where his work was included in three solo exhibitions and numerous group shows. Atkins lives in New York City and Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey, where he currently produces new work.
All the while, Atkins’s creative interests were a source of fulfillment. When uninspired by his course work as a medical student, he often skipped class to attend pottery workshops, honing his talent for sculpture. His formal artistic studies began at the McNay Art Institute in San Antonio, Texas, in 1970, where he continued to learn ceramic technique. After returning to New York, Atkins set up his practice as a psychoanalyst and took a studio space in Woodstock, NY.
Atkins says that he tunes into his dark thoughts as the basis for his work. He expresses his vision through simple, abstracted human and animal forms that exist mostly in states of physical or psychological distress. His subjects are stripped of detail and reduced to their most basic elements--eyes, mouths, heads, and torsos. Atkins draws the viewer’s attention away from specific details and instead emphasizes their emotional weight through their poses and body language.
Atkins has been represented by the Kornblatt Gallery in Washington DC, and, in New York, by The Roko Gallery, Art Latitude Gallery, and The Kraushaar Galleries, where his work was included in three solo exhibitions and numerous group shows. Atkins lives in New York City and Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey, where he currently produces new work.
Jerry Atkins In His Egg Harbor, NJ Studio
Artist Statement
When I am making my sculpture, I become totally immersed in the work, listening to the radio, to music, and work many hours at a stretch. I have been working this way since childhood. Ideas grab me, just pop into my head. It could be a person, their mental or physical condition or something I hear on the news or see on the street. Whatever it is, I respond to it as an aspect of my own being which I can be universally understood. Many people have responded to my piece, "Thumb Suckers." I sucked my thumb when I was younger, and I view thumb sucking as a child's attempt to satisfy him/herself and feel more secure. This attempt to feel more secure captures the human wish to fend off fears and find a place of safety.
When I am conceiving a piece, I begin by designing a sketch on paper of my vision. When I am satisfied that the image represents what I want to portray, I build the piece by hand out of clay. I make the molds directly from the clay model and then finalize my piece by casting it in bronze. I often use a combination of modern and vintage tools that I have inherited from my parentage, with some tools that are over a hundred years old. My goal as an artist is for others to perceive and ponder my work, and ultimately comprehend what I initially set out to express, from sketch to cast. Everything I create comes from a deep need to express something important to me - whatever that may be at the moment. My art will always originate in my desire to express something that is powerful. I do not look for something to say when I create. I close my eyes and search for a feeling that is waiting to physically manifest. I do not search for a message to express. it comes, and I need to create it.
When I am conceiving a piece, I begin by designing a sketch on paper of my vision. When I am satisfied that the image represents what I want to portray, I build the piece by hand out of clay. I make the molds directly from the clay model and then finalize my piece by casting it in bronze. I often use a combination of modern and vintage tools that I have inherited from my parentage, with some tools that are over a hundred years old. My goal as an artist is for others to perceive and ponder my work, and ultimately comprehend what I initially set out to express, from sketch to cast. Everything I create comes from a deep need to express something important to me - whatever that may be at the moment. My art will always originate in my desire to express something that is powerful. I do not look for something to say when I create. I close my eyes and search for a feeling that is waiting to physically manifest. I do not search for a message to express. it comes, and I need to create it.