
About
Jay Exon is a visual artist based in Tulsa, Oklahoma. His creative journey began in the world of theater design, where he apprenticed under noted set designer Richard Ellis and developed a strong foundation in scenic painting. While his current work departs from that of his early training, a sense of theatricality and drama continues to inform his canvases through scale, movement, and vivid contrasts.
Statement
“My work explores the tension between structure and spontaneity. Inspired by fleeting encounters with the natural world, I create bold, gestural abstractions that are less about depicting a specific place and more about translating sensation and memory into form. I deconstruct the landscape and reimagine it through a personal visual language shaped by emotion, intuition, and experience.
Each painting is built through a layered, physical process—scraping, spreading, and reworking the surface until a rhythm emerges. I often work on several pieces simultaneously within a shared palette, allowing conversations to unfold between canvases. Color plays a central role in my practice, and I draw as much from the grandeur of a sunset as from the overlooked beauty of a weathered wall or a forest trail.
The act of painting itself is vital to my process. I embrace unpredictability, trusting that the work will evolve through doing. As Robert Motherwell said, ‘In the brush doing what it is doing, it will stumble upon what one couldn’t do by oneself.’ That belief guides me in the studio—each mark a discovery, every gesture a reflection of something deeper.”
Artist CV
Solo Exhibitions
A Breath In Time, Howell Gallery: APRIL 2023 (Oklahoma City, OK)
The Curve Gallery: SEPT-OCT 2018 (Muskogee, OK)
Landon Thomas Designs: JUNE-AUG 2018 (Tulsa, OK)
Art Live, The Meridia: FEB 2018 (Tulsa, OK)
Plein Air Pop-Up, West Elm: FEB 2017 (Tulsa, OK)
Michael Brothers: JUNE-NOV 2016 (Tulsa, OK)
Group Exhibitions
Bank First Artist Exhibition: SEPT-NOV 2025 (Oklahoma City, OK)
Tulsa Artist Coalition Member's Show, TAC Gallery: JAN 2025 (Tulsa, OK)
Gallery Artists on Exhibit, Joseph Gierek Fine Art: Current (Tulsa, OK)
Rock, Paper, Scissors, Cox Center: OCT 2023 (Tulsa, OK)
Quality of Light, Gaylord Pickens Museum: JUN-SEPT 2023 (Oklahoma City, OK)
Members Exhibition, Living Arts: FEB 2020 (Tulsa, OK)
Holiday Art Show, Joseph Gierek Fine Art: DEC 2020 (Tulsa, OK)
Impressions of Landscape, Landon Thomas Designs: DEC-JAN 2019/20 (Tulsa, OK)
Canvas and Dance, Skiatook Arts Center: OCT 2019 (Skiatook, OK)
Parade of Homes: JUNE 2019 (Tulsa, OK)
46th Annual Designer Showcase, Harwelden Mansion: MAY 2019 (Tulsa, OK)
Yin and Yang, Chrysalis Salon: MAY-JUNE 2019 (Tulsa, OK)
Fresh Oklahoma 2019, Landon Thomas Designs: FEB-MAR 2019 (Tulsa, OK)
Abstracted, Tulsa Artery : JAN-FEB 2018 (Tulsa, OK)
Kindred Art Show: NOV 2017 (Jenks, OK)
Contemporium, Skiatook Arts Center : AUG-SEPT 2017 (Skiatook, OK)
Decopolis Fine Arts Show: NOV-DEC 2016 (Tulsa, OK)
Education
Internship, Richard Ellis Scenic Designs, JAN 2011 - DEC 2011 (Tulsa, OK)
Corporate Collectors
Loves
The 2300
Crowe and Dunlevy
Gable Gotwals
Southside Behavioral Health
Permanent Collections
The Oklahoma City Community Foundation