User:Xandermpls/Virtual Warrior Ink. Jacob Alexander

Jacob Alexander was born in St. Paul, Minnesota in 1986. His appetite for art was unleashed after visiting Argentina, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Kauii and California. He studied the violin at Mac Phail and later pursued graphic design at Hennepin Technical College.

After realizing the restraints of digital art, he was awakened to his personal poetry through a raw 3-Dimensional attitude. On October 14th 2006, he organized his first solo exhibition at Salon E! in Uptown, Minneapolis, Minnesota featuring his many styles. Following that he was exhibited by Victor Yepez, a Latin Artist of Art Trujillo at La Bodega. A month later he shared a gallery with fine artist Gigi Turker. He has collaborated with Brant Kingman, Jean Bardot and various production companies (Sound-In-Motion, Kode, Cizetta, Intelliphunk, Soundscene, Undersound, Kingman Studios etc.)

In his 4 year art career as a self-taught artist, he has had his works showcased in, St. Paul and. His range of style is from everything poetic in nature and is fused with universal principles that are open-ended transmissions of love, hope and beauty. His adoration for ancient culture bleeds into nearly all of his work; embracing the past and using his own space-like presentation or “futuristic landscaping.”

Nationally known and Internationally published (two-time published in the largest contemporary arts publication, . He has featured over 60 local artists (models, musicians, visual, video, etc.) in his self-made traveling exhibition. His Gypsy style, changing locations such as La Candalabra in Northeast Art’s District (an aerobatic and ethnic dance studio), Picosa in Historic St. Anthony Main, and AQUA right in the heart of Downtown Minneapolis. He continues to be a voice for those who seek to be heard.

He has built a reputation as a body-painter, gracing places such as the Minneapolis Chambers Hotel and Paul Van Dyk's recent concert in Minneapolis. He continues to showcase his live, erotic multi-sensory art exhibition, giving an audience a look into his day to day life behind-the-scenes of fashion glam. He has had his work on display at headlining concerts such as MOTOR & Superstars of Love.

Recently curating the exhibition at the Gallery 13, a contemporary art gallery in Downtown Minneapolis, featured the erotic artwork of Boston native Oni Sakti. Working as the Curator, Body-Painter and Director in a single night is not uncommon for Alexander. Decorating 9 models while running to play his violin is “his style.” He is known with other names such as Pashur the Body Painter (Playboy), Scott Blake (Guggenheim), Leonardo Niermen and others.

Blue Bridge Media Group, a Minneapolis Video Production Crew, started filming Anticoast film compiling Alexander's efforts in shaping the Minneapolis art-scene and the surrounding. Currently still in production and scheduled for release up and coming.

Perhaps he is best known as the Director and Producer of the Shadows & Sound Exhibition.

Shadows & Sound was a four part event that was a collaboration of artists from all over Minnesota including visual artists, musicians, dancers, film-makers, and fashion designers all working together to raise awareness of the diverse artistic presence that thrive in Minnesota.

Acting like vigilante-style gallery has made Shadows and Sound into a moving event that has been placed in multiple locations throughout Minneapolis. It has welcomed all ambitions and sought after various artists in order to showcase their work and performances. It is led by Jacob Alexander a.k.a. Xander and his team who have had one particular goal in mind: no artist deserves to struggle, and they will have an audience that will listen.

Shadows and Sound was created in order to strengthen the Minnesota Arts communities, strengthen the ties to the next generation of artists, and prove that our disciplines create a collective voice.

This four-part event was divided into sections in order to attract as much attention throughout the year as possible. It has been an on-going experiment to see who would participate, who would speak, and who would listen. Shadows and Sound has created a following and media attention due to its unique (and changing) mix of participating artists.

Shadows and Sound has provided a platform for the next generation of artists in Minnesota and utilized a radical method of showcasing the artists that are newly emerging from our community.

He recently opened the only gallery on the entertainement strip in Downtown Minneapolis (Karnak Gallery & Studio LLC.) and now continues that as an art-archive of the Minneapolis Atlantis Collective and operates the VWInk Modeling Agency. ©

"There is nothing vanilla about Alexander."

"By comparison, Alexander seems a bit more hopeful about humanity’s future, and he tries to spread that feeling through his colorful and symbol-laden mixed-media works."

"You know that dancing-fish number in The little Mermaid? This party is going to be nothing like that."

"Alexander loves to challenge the constructs and codified meanings of the world that everyone else takes for granted. At its core, Alexander’s art does away with modernistic definitions, instead symbolizing ancient, primeval, incredibly romanticized views of the world. By making his audience turn around and view art on his own terms, Alexander breaks the signals and codes we use to define our surroundings, instead forcing us to view the world through his inspirational, uplifting, slightly megalomaniacal visions."