Jazer Giles is a Pioneer Valley multi-hyphenate: electronic musician, experimental video maker, bike mechanic, and GIF artist.
Jazer Giles does it all. Based in the Pioneer Valley, the latest artist in our Showcasing the GIFted series works in everything from video to music to ballet. His GIFs offer a launchpad into an immensely creative mind. Laugh, stare, and fall into the infinite loops. Then be sure to check out Giles’ many other endeavors.
Take: Do you use a particular moniker for your GIF work?
Jazer Giles: Jazer Giles is my given name and I use it for all of my creative work.
T: Where are you from?
JG: I have been living in Northampton/Amherst since 2002. I grew up in Southwick, Massachusetts.
T: What got you started making GIFs, and why GIFs rather than something else?
JG: I started making GIFs as teasers of my video projects and computer animations. I like the format because I think GIFs exemplify current media consumption on the internet, requiring the distillation of interesting/beautiful/funny/th
T: What do you do when you’re not creating GIFs? (i.e. other jobs)
JG: I am adjunct faculty in the Music Department at the University of Massachusetts, where I teach interactive electronic music and composition. I create and perform experimental music and video, often in collaboration with choreographer Barbie Diewald and composer and contrabassist Salvatore Macchia. I am a founding member of the Royal Frog Ballet performance collective. I also teach piano and accordion lessons and work at Hampshire Bicycle Exchange as a bike mechanic.