The Bel-Jon Technique
Bel-Jon painted with light. His paint brush was a handful of steel
wool and his palette was refracted light. The illusion of form and
motion was achieved in his murals by the refract-ion and diffusion
of light from the many and varied angles of buffed and burnished
metal surfaces. As one moves past the murals, the color and design
of the work seem to change be-cause of the many angles of
reflectivity. What makes his work spectacular are the specially
arranged lighting systems that give the murals a sparkling
iridescence in ever changing color tones. These lights, reflecting
from the facets of countless “scratches”, vividly project his murals’
figures. When the lights are turned off, the murals take on a
silvery-white appearance with grey to black shadows.
His works encompassed murals, decorative structural applications,
dividers, doors screens, windows, tables and other appointments - -
in brushed design on sheet metals; mosaics of metals; relief
mosaics with reinforced plastic; gilded bas relief, free form murals
with custom colored aluminum; and translucent mosaics with
metals, plastic and colored glass. His style ranged from
representational works to abstract forms.
Bel-Jon’s innovative art was commissioned by Fortune 500
companies as well as private individuals and ranged in size from
four square feet to over five hundred square feet. His work was
chronicled in two books and major publications like the
American Artist, San Francisco Chronicle, Architectural Record,
New York Mirror, Popular Mechanics and numerous industry
periodicals. Unfortunately, many of the companies who
commissioned Bel-Jon are no longer in existence. Bel-Jon’s
daughters are trying to trace the current locations of many of his
works. If you know where any of this artwork might be, please
contact the family at info@bel-jonstudios.com .
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