Drawing is everything to me. I work within a narrative. My work explores a moment in a story: there is a prologue and an epilogue. I like a drawing to be viewed with duality: an internal response of the protagonist to an external event. I like stories that have intimate yet broader implications, sometimes as revealed to me through life in Washington, DC, my former work as a counselor in a community mental health clinic, what I’m reading, current events, social justice and contemporary humanist themes.

I usually work with medium- to large-size paper, often in multiple panels like the pages of a book, using pencil and color pencil which can evoke writing and narration. Each panel stands on its own; together, a larger narrative may emerge.

The result, I hope, is thoughtful, intriguing, accessible, and human … and a bridge between self-exploration and how we may translate such understanding into action in our present world.

7/2024

Biography: Jeffrey Berg

I have drawn all my life. Formerly a counselor in a community mental health clinic, I currently work full-time in my studio at the 52 “O” Street Studios in Washington, DC. My work has been exhibited in numerous solo and juried group shows in the DC area, and several open studio events, and has been reviewed by The Washington Post and The Hill Rag.

My work is in private collections as well as in the permanent collections of commercial and public venues. I have thrice been awarded an Arts and Humanities Fellowship from the DC Commission of the Arts and Humanities. My work has been published in five international collections and on the cover of a regional publication. I have participated in two artist residencies.