A fresh face makes a splash
By Brandon Griggs
The Salt Lake Tribune
October 16 2005
Every artist, no matter the creative field, lives for those moments when inspiration triumphs and the work catches fire. For painter Jeffrey Hein, it happens almost every time he does a portrait.
“There’s a point when you’re painting where all of a sudden the subject matter comes to live…and they’re looking back at you,” he says. “There’s just no other thrill like that.”
At the callow age of 30, Hein’s talent for portraiture already has earned him substantial success. Three years removed from art classes at the University of Utah, he is painting U.S. Senators and selling his more ambitious canvases for huge sums-one is currently priced at $73,000-remarkable for a fledgling artist far from the nation’s coastal art centers.
Hein’s paintings are on display through the end of October at Williams Fine Art in downtown Salt Lake City, a traditional gallery whose walls usually are filled with landscapes by such 20th century masters as Maynard Dixon or LeConte Stewart. His works first caught owner Clayton Willams’ eye three years ago when Hein won a scholarship that included a two-week solo show at the gallery. Since then, Williams has only grown more impressed.
The gallery owner calls Hein “the most promising young artist Utah has.” Given that Williams has a financial stake in Hein’s reputation, such talk could be dismissed as hype. And lovers of edgier abstract art might disagree. But the quality of Hein’s work-and its popularity on the often stingy Utah art market speaks for itself.
“I’ve been doing this for 16 years and I’ve never seen an artist have the early success that he’s had,” Williams says. “He has a great gift. It usually takes 10 years for an artist to gain acceptance.”
Born in upstate New York, Hein didn’t begin studying art until he came west to attend Brigham Young University-Idaho. Like all student artists, he dabbled in still lifes and landscapes, but they didn’t engage him like the challenge of capturing the human figure.
His art career almost was squelched before it could start. Hein had a major scare in his early 20’s when he was diagnosed with testicular cancer. Treatment proved successful, but he later had to have a tumor removed from his abdomen. Complications from the surgery caused his intestines to become gangrenous, forcing doctors to remove much of his colon.
“They thought I wouldn’t make it through the surgery,” he says matter-of-factly. “There were a couple of times I had to say goodbye to my family.”
Given a second chance and finally healthy, Hein plunged into his art with renewed determination. He transferred to the University of Utah, where his talent immediately impressed his professors. He also began a productive relationship with Williams, who recommended Hein when U.S. Sen. Gordon Smith, a Republican from Oregon and a gallery client, was looking for an artist to paint his portrait.
Hein’s brush with death also strengthened his religious faith, which has led him to paint large canvases of biblical scenes. “The Raising of Jairus’ Daughter” depicts a 12 year old girl moments after Jesus’ touch has revived her from the dead. The girl is flanked by her weeping mother and her father, who is gazing at Christ in astonishment. Jesus’ hands are visible clasping the girl’s arm, although the rest of him remains unseen beyond the frame.
“Christ Healing the Blind” shows Jesus standing, arms outstretched, over two sightless men as witnesses look on in wonder. Christ’s face is shrouded by shadow. Hein keeps Jesus’ image intentionally vague to preserve his power and mystery.
“I try not to paint his face,” says Hein, a devout member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. “If I let the viewer imaging what Christ looks like, the emotion is stronger.”
To capture such vibrant and realistic scenes, Hein employs a painstaking multi-step process involving sketches, photographs and studies o live models’ faces. He also will arrange clothed mannequins in his studio to get details and proportions just right.
“It’s my way of getting the whole scene on each model’s schedule, one at a time.” He says. “By the time it’s all done, I have so much information that it’s like I worked from life.”
Hein paints only life-size reproductions of his human subjects, giving his portraits extra heft. He sometimes depicts realistic figures against abstract, minimalist backgrounds, giving his nonreligious canvases a contemporary look.
One, “My Girl,” shows his wife Jennifer, staring at the viewer, mug-shot style, while wearing hipster glasses and a funky hat. “Brothers” effectively captures the distinct personalities of two adolescent siblings. A third, “Taylin,” shows an 18-month-old girl in a pink dress, eyes wide with curiosity and left arm clutching the blue-jeaned leg of her mother.
In most of Hein’s paintings, his subject’s eyes flicker and their faces seem ready to emerge from the canvas.
“I’ve seen so many portraits over the years. And sometimes the person looks like he’s in a casket,” Williams says. “But Jeffrey puts so much color into the faces that you can see they have life.”
