Jess, 80; Surrealistic S.F. Artist Known for Paintings, Collages

Jess, 80, a reclusive San Francisco surrealistic artist known for his narrative paintings and multilayered collages, died Jan. 2 in San Francisco. The cause of death was not reported.

Born Burgess Collins in Long Beach, he dropped his surname when he became an artist more than 50 years ago.

He attended Long Beach Junior College and Caltech, intending to become a scientist, but was drafted during World War II and served as a chemist for the Manhattan Project in Oak Ridge, Tenn. In off-duty hours, he painted and drew.

After completing his degree at Caltech in 1948, he took a job at the Hanford Atomic Energy Project in Washington state. But within a year, he developed so many doubts about the direction of science and the dangers of nuclear weaponry that he switched his career path and attended the California School of Fine Arts in San Francisco.

By the 1950s, he was creating what he called “paste-ups,” his signature, large-scale collages made from pieces of jigsaw puzzles, illustrations and discarded engravings.

A romantic, he remained outside contemporary Pop Art and Abstract Expressionism circles. His works have been exhibited across the country, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, the National Gallery of Art in Washington, and the Museum of Modern Art in San Francisco.