Gary Justis

Gary Justis
Location
Bloomington, Illinois, US
Birthday
April 04
Bio
Gary Justis has worked primarily in the area of kinetic sculpture for the last 32 years. He lived and worked in Chicago from 1977 to 1999. He currently resides in Bloomington Illinois, where he teaches and writes stories about his actual experiences. He is a regular contributor to "Does This Make Sense?" an on-line magazine and social networking site. (please take a look at his "Sculpture" link for more info)

MY RECENT POSTS

FEBRUARY 12, 2012 3:35PM

An Island of Mind and Ocean

Beaver_Island_aerial_map

Beaver Island, Lake Michigan                                             NASA

 … Read full post »

Editor’s Pick
JANUARY 12, 2012 12:51PM

Silver from Blue and Grey

G Justis Chins

That’s me talking to the photographer, Steven Gross, over one of the many breakfasts we shared at Chin’s Diner, at Canal and 18th Street, on the south side of Chicago  

© 1982 Steven E. Gross   Chicago


 IRead full post »

Editor’s Pick
JANUARY 11, 2012 1:30PM

The Creationists

The Creationists   
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
By Steve Arney and Gary Justis  
 


 
 
 

  Read full post »

Editor’s Pick
JANUARY 5, 2012 8:02AM

Synthetica

redhead 2b


These gazes are real, as visual fiction goes, and they serve us with plausible anecdotes for placing synthetic figures in an American landscape. Many have been cast out of their original situations, and are most likely victims, each with an uncertain reckoning in a consciousRead full post »

JANUARY 1, 2012 3:41AM

Hidden in the Good Days

The neighborhood

 View of Grove Street from the studio of L.J. Douglas, early Fall, Bloomington, IL, 2011

 

from the studio 3

View of sunrise on Grove Street from the studio of L.J. Douglas, Bloomington, IL, Winter, 2011

  

As I consider the idea of a timeless image, there is usuallyRead full post »

Editor’s Pick
DECEMBER 13, 2011 10:53PM

The Soggy Saint

  santa 2

 

In a small midwestern community of the late 1950’s, there was a pattern in the divination of space and opportunity. There were jobs…good ones.  Characters were welcome, taking up the spaces between success and the commonplace.  We were coming off of the e/Read full post »

Editor’s Pick
DECEMBER 12, 2011 8:54AM

The Body's Attainable Limits

spine 1b
 
  Grace Phillips, District 12, aluminum, leather.
 

In universities, Visual Art shares a distinguished place in the area of Fine Arts,

Read full post »
NOVEMBER 30, 2011 8:36AM

The Buoyant Dogs

Dog warning 1b
 
American commercial dog breeders of the early 20th Century responded to the public’s ambivalence towards our sometimes rowdy K-9s by creating a breed that was physically buoyant and could be shipped, carried, or held more easily. "Man’s Best Friend Light" re-invigor/
Read full post »
NOVEMBER 28, 2011 10:00PM

Doggone Good Advice

mom 1 b
A striking facsimile of my inimitable Momma, 1937  

 

 

At the age of Ninety-two, Momma knows the uncertainties most people carry as they think about the metaphysical aspects of the human condition, so she joined Netflix and watched the entire series of “Kung-Fu&rdquRead full post »

NOVEMBER 27, 2011 10:00PM

7 Surprises in a Middle-Life

Blubber 1c

 Blubberstick, 5,1/2 years, 2011

 

In the present, these are a few of the things I have come to like, despite any pretext to dislike them from experience, imagination, or persuasion….

 

1.  Making my sweetheart laugh, until the tears roll down her face, is anRead full post »

Editor’s Pick
NOVEMBER 11, 2011 8:24AM

Remembering the Quiet Veteran

  Dad sailor 1942 b

 George V Justis    1943     Senior Medical Corpsman

serving primarily in the Pacific Theater 

 

 

In the times I have stood and thought of this marvelous man, a stoic provider of safety and light, of reassurance…of beginnings, of time andRead full post »

Editor’s Pick
OCTOBER 31, 2011 12:41AM

Capturing Halloween

 
Phone lines

 Dimmitt’s Grove, Bloomington, IL    October 2011

    

My camera is protection against the agents of the unseen worlds, an instrument held snugly between my eye and images that startle the imagination.

At this time of year, in the month of October, wRead full post »

OCTOBER 26, 2011 10:19PM

Letter to an Extraordinary Young Man

Greg and Katie 2ab
 

Greg Justis, Katie Justis, and Deborah Hartmann, on the occasion of Greg and Katie’s Wedding, October 22, 2011, Louisville, KY

        photo by Gary Justis

 

 

Wednesday, October 26th, 2011

Bloomington, Illinois

 

Dear Greg,

PleaRead full post »

OCTOBER 13, 2011 8:59AM

The Domestic "53%"

Kitties

Back to front: Mr Darcy and Lil’ Smoke

53% of our family is feline. They are not empowered with that serious percentage by mere numbers (there are two humans and a dog also) but by the force of their kitty personalities. They demand a full 53% ofRead full post »

SEPTEMBER 27, 2011 1:53PM

The Capricious Woodsmen

Clowning guys full

Group of men, photographer unknown, early 1900’s   (larger)


When I look at photographic images, I sometimes recognize a photographer’s intentions in simple terms. I find the content to be clear in the first few moments we see the image, but with some reflection I disco
Read full post »
Editor’s Pick
SEPTEMBER 14, 2011 11:36AM

The G.O.P. Spring

 
gop spring
 
 
 

 By Steve Arney and Gary Justis     Courtesy of Studio Magazine  

  (larger version)

 
 
horsin large 1
 
My sis, Jackie Justis,  with an unknown neighborhood boy 
Kansas   1952   8mm capture
 
 

The designs of a teenage mind are something we adults regard with wonder and trepidation. We inhibit our determination atRead full post »

Editor’s Pick
JULY 18, 2011 10:31AM

Timeless

child and fish
 
  Isla petting the Koi   2011  photograph by the author  (larger image)   

 

For some people in our age, solitude can be luxury, and during intense activities with the mind or hand, deep emersion makes time irrelevant, at least for theRead full post »

Editor’s Pick
JUNE 21, 2011 9:03AM

Kathryn's Second Angel


Homage to Tom Selleck1a

Homage to Tom Selleck (jokingly referencing his famous mustache, but this form could be easily interpreted as somethingRead full post »

Editor’s Pick
JUNE 7, 2011 11:06AM

Inscrutable Cosmetics

  partial taxidermy 2c copy

(mid 20th Century) Good friends are thrilled to figure out a placement for a newly stuffed chum.

 

I first heard about Partial Taxidermy (PT) when I was an art student in college. My actor friends used the term to describe people whoRead full post »

Editor’s Pick
MAY 20, 2011 9:41AM

Between Low and High Culture: Heavy Brow Gallery


Heavy Brow 1

 

The exciting activities of Heavy Brow Gallery are a welcome addition to our historic town, and the levels of interest this small space generates are extraordinary. When you compare the non-profit, independent exhibition space to other venues in Chicago (The Suburban comes to mind)Read full post »

Editor’s Pick
MAY 9, 2011 11:33AM

Gilded Sky and Cerulean Moon

 
Victorian Moon

Cerulean Moon, night sky over Bloomington, Illinois   2011

 

angry clouds
 
Gilded Sky, morning April sky over Bloomington, Illinois   2011
 
 
 
MAY 8, 2011 11:41AM

Cat Man

Cat Man 1

 (click photos for larger image)

Cat Man 2

"Walt don't let the cats see this or it will scare them to death   I sent this in the place of birthday card   Best wishes   GR."

   …

Read full post »

Editor’s Pick
APRIL 25, 2011 8:40AM

The Weight Is A Gift: The Sculpture of Emily Smith

Carin 2010

 Carin, a stunning installation in 2009 by Emily Smith, in its first iteration, fabric,paper, batting, dimensions variable


 

Dysfunction in the realm of a child’s activities is usually seen as the byproduct of immature thinking, and indistinct actions. The inverse perceptioRead full post »

Editor’s Pick
APRIL 14, 2011 7:50AM

Art for the Soul: Inflammable Material

Inflam 3
 
Jamie Morse, Untitled Glass Installation, dimensions variable, 2011
 

A Visual Artist’s material production ultimately finds itself in the complex, audacious and risky business of mounting a public exhibition. Historically, exhibitions are repositories of ideas that areRead full post »