Jentaculum is Bachor's latest mash-up of the archaic and the contemporary. The subject matter of ancient mosaics can almost lull one to sleep with ever recurring religious and iconic imagery. Jim melds this extremely old art form with modern day topics to awaken the medium. Based on a childhood obsession with 1970's era breakfast cereals (and the prizes that came with them) the series contrasts the elegant images of antiquity with today's crass commercialism. It also plays off of the cult-like devotion people have for mass marketed foods that ultimate are probably not good for you. Perhaps if these products were available back then they too would have been adored by the ancients. Typical subject matter from actual mosaics and frescoes produced during the height of the Roman Empire help round out the look of the series. That along with a big helping of vintage Americana.
Chicago artist Jim Bachor adapts the mosaic, an art form that dates to at least the third millennium BC, and applies it to contemporary American life. From junk food to potholes to breakfast cereal, his vibrant work permanently locks into mortar unexpected concepts drawn from the present. Using the same materials, tools, and methods of the craftsmen of antiquity, he creates mosaics that speak of modern things, but in an ancient voice. By harnessing and exploiting the limitations of this indestructible technique, Bachor's work continually surprises the viewer, while challenging long-held notions of what a mosaic should be. Jim's work has been included in juried shows throughout the country and his pothole art project attracted world-wide attention this past summer. His first public art commission "thrive", a 700+ sqft mosaic, was recently installed at the Chicago Transit Authority's Thorndale station on the city's far north side.
