On Christmas Day 1981 in Granville, Illinois, five-year-old Jon Arvizu unwrapped a present from Santa Claus -the coveted "Crayola Art Carousel"- and a passion for painting and drawing was born. Jon began seriously painting and drawing in college, earning a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Texas Christian University in 1998.

Today, Jon's work is eclectic in subject matter, touching on a few genres while remaining playful in mood and rooted in his view of "The Aesthetic." Embracing the philosophy of art for art's sake, he believes in keeping things light. In Jon's own words, "I create art that I find interesting, attractive, cool, playful, colorful. Something that feeds the soul, and has a visual punch."

Jon describes his work as "De Stijl De Luxe" integrating the simple abstract style of the De Stijl movement and the so-called "low brow" De Luxe pop surrealism with origins in comics, car culture and other influences. In blending these seemingly contradictory styles, Jon creates work that he classifies as distinctively graphic in nature. In addition to his fine arts illustration, Jon is owner and operator of Trapdoor Studio in Scottsdale, providing commercial illustration and graphic design services to local and national clients.

More of Jon's work can be viewed at www.trapdoorstudio.com.

See the work of artists previously featured in the Gallery by visiting our Gallery Archive.

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