TAG artist wins Ohio Arts Council Award
PORT CLINTON – A local Arts Garage resident artist is celebrating after winning an award at the Ohio State Fair in Columbus this summer.
Metal artist Jeff Jackson’s “Bolt” — a sculpted dog ingeniously created out of hundreds of nuts and bolts — won an Ohio Arts Council Award last week at the State Fair.
Jackson lives across the Thomas Edison Memorial Bridge in the village of Bayview in Erie County but has been an artist at The Arts Garage in Port Clinton, commonly known as TAG, for the past two years.
A sheet metal fabricator by trade, Jackson stumbled upon his artistry while practicing welding.
“I always had basic metal parts laying around, and one day I just started welding pieces together just to practice,” Jackson said. “Then I started creating some ideas with the metal.”
After that he started searching for unique metal pieces to use, he said.
COVID-19 pandemic gave artist time to practice his craft
Over the last 10 years, he’s grown in his art. The COVID-19 pandemic gave Jackson free time to make mistakes and learn, “leveling up” his work, he said.
Bolt, the prize-winning dog sculpture, took about 50 hours to make.
The State Fair was the first juried show he had participated in and he was happy to be accepted, he said.
The Ohio State Fair 2023 Fine Arts Exhibition included more than 360 art works by more than 280 artists —professionals and amateurs from throughout Ohio — on view in the Cox Fine Arts Center at the south end of the Ohio State fairgrounds.
Bolt and other pieces in the exhibition were displayed through Aug. 6.
“The real prize is all the people that see my sculptures over the course of the fair,” Jackson said. “Winning an Ohio Arts Council award was a sweet bonus.”
The Greater Port Clinton Arts Council, the nonprofit organization that operates TAG, was proud of Jackson’s recognition and to have him as a member, said President Carol Morgan.
“His ability to take ordinary items and create fine art is amazing,” Morgan said.
Dreams of a public art installation
Morgan said she also hopes this spurs interest for Jackson’s fundraising campaign for the installation of a 23-foot blue fisherman sculpture on the old fishing pier in Bayview.
So far they have raised $3,148 of the $5,800 needed for Phase 1 of the project, with the GPCAAC helping in the fundraising process.
To see a scale model of the sculpture, see more of Jackson’s work and learn more about the project, visit The Arts Garage in the city’s old maintenance garage at 317 W. Perry St., Port Clinton.
Jackson’s work, some of which is for sale, is on display at TAG.
For more information about GPCAAC and things going on at TAG, please visit gpcaac.org.
This article originally appeared on Fremont News-Messenger: Jackson's 'Bolt' artwork wins award at Ohio State Fair
