Thank you for your valuable time and taking interest in my art life. You are witness to a self-managed art business built to express, develop, enrich and hopefully enlighten your state of mind. Now that I have your attention I want to get a little more personal with you. I was born La-Mario Jackson in the state of Virginia. I have been a student of art all of my life. I have taken numerous art classes throughout my school years, but have never had any formal art training. The advancement of my art knowledge has come from years of practice, reading and a gift from my father in heaven. It was on August 15th 1998 that I sold my first painting, but it was actually the summer of 1988 when “Chez” was born.
I currently reside in Upper Marlboro, Maryland. I have also lived in Virginia and Washington, D.C. throughout my childhood. I can say that I have gained tremendous experiences from living in these different places, but the concept behind Chez originates in the streets of Southeast, Washington, D. C. I was young then, and had aspirations to draw, but I was living a life that was leading me no where fast. I would hangout on the streets trying to survive the best way I knew how. The path I was taking would only lead to a life of destruction. After years of this type of living, I saw my friends get locked-up, killed or just plain loose their minds. In the streets, you live fast and you die young. In these very same streets, two of my closest friends gave me the name Chez. From that day on, I have been Chez.
Times were fun, but dangerous and everything seemed to be getting closer to the end. One day, I received a call telling me that one of my closest friends had been killed. This brought great sadness to my heart and it still does. A month later, after the killing of my friend, his brother was killed and this truly hurt me even more, leaving me in great despair. I used to sign my paintings with my regular name, but because my love and appreciation for these two friends; the same two friends that helped me grow and protected me from danger, was so great that I decided to sign every painting with Chez in remembrance of them. Reminding me of where I came from and how it all played a significant part of who I am today.
My painting career has blossomed since those days and every step I take is a great blessing from God. My first show was in Largo, Maryland on July 8, 1999. After that, I decided to show case my art in various events around the nation.
