Monsters: Pro and Con

by Jad Fair

It’s a Beautiful Day

by Jad Fair

Jump for Joy

by Jad Fair

Manor’s resident alien isn’t just out there tending to the horses; he’s a paper factory. Three new books of paper cuttings – what Fair does when he’s not performing with Half Japanese or touring or recording or exhibiting – explore his obsessions through hand-cut intricacy. It’s painstaking work, the kind you have to really look at, let your eyes soften, like for a Magic Eye poster. Monsters, a Fair favorite, features a dizzying number of vaguely menacing/cute black and white cuts, while Jump for Joy‘s colorful heart-shaped prints achieve inspirational folk art. (The Three Stooges one is choice.) It’s a Beautiful Day is the better half of Monsters, filled with square-eyed birds, wavy vines, and flat-footed dogs, no doubt inspired by his range life. Put them all together, and it’s like the inside of Fair’s brain came tumbling out. www.jadfair.com.


This article appears in December 4 • 2009.

A note to readers: Bold and uncensored, The Austin Chronicle has been Austin’s independent news source for over 40 years, expressing the community’s political and environmental concerns and supporting its active cultural scene. Now more than ever, we need your support to continue supplying Austin with independent, free press. If real news is important to you, please consider making a donation of $5, $10 or whatever you can afford, to help keep our journalism on stands.

SUPPORT US