James Jean retired, then didn’t really retire at all. In a similar vein of Michael Jordan, who retired from one phase of his career only to return stronger and more well-equipped to dominate once again, Jean left the illustration world behind in 2008, redefining himself as one of the most talented and intriguing fine artists of his generation. On the eve of perhaps the biggest show of his career, Parallel Lives, opening at Tilton Gallery in NYC on January 9, Jean is, once again, at a crossroads.

We love how this works out. Our February 2013 issue, about to hit newsstands and featuring cover art by James Jean, previewed a bunch of the artwork that will go on display tonight, January 9 at Jack Tilton Gallery in NYC. For the occasion, we picked out a few of our personal favorites from the show to preview for you today...

Today, we announce our February 2013 issue, featuring our old friend James Jean, who is set to open a new body of work at Jack Tilton Gallery in NYC on January 9, 2013. February 2013 also features our very special (and limited edition cover, more on that tomorrow) project with famed artist Matthew Barney and skateboard legend Lance Mountain. We document Mountain's ride on a Barney-designed skate deck (part of the Drawing Restraint 19 series), at the Ride It Sculpture Park in Detroit as part of Juxtapoz ongoing collaboration with Power House Productions.

Sure, we get excited about the holiday season, but we are already getting excited about 2013. One reason is that Juxtapoz has something cooking with James Jean, and we are extremely excited about his new exhibitiion, Parallel Lives, opening at Jack Tilton Gallery in NYC on January 9, 2013. James sent us a little teaser this morning as a little good holiday gift for us, and of course, for you our readers. Stay tuned for more in the coming weeks...

We wrote on the site back in October about James Jean launching his OVM line of jewellery at Lane Crawford in Hong Kong, and he just posted on his site about the mural he painted in conjunction with the launch. The 80" piece was created with Velum. Graphite, Ink, and Digital, and of course, is pretty damn epic in the James Jean style.

Lane Crawford BLITZ is thrilled to host acclaimed visual artist, James Jean (December 2010 cover artist) to Hong Kong this 24th to 26th October. The celebrated artist and designer will launch his highly sought-after OVM line of jewellery and accessories for the first time in store, as well as a special collection of scarves, pouches and iphone veils in a custom design exclusively for BLITZ Lane Crawford.

Pedro Matos and the Ivory & Black Gallery in London are getting set for a strong group exhibition this June 15, with Juxtapoz stalwarts Andrew Schoultz, Cleon Peterson, James Jean, Ryan Travis Christian, and Richard Colman making up the Gin & Juice show. Good title, we think.

James Jean is a Taiwanese-American visual artist, known for both his commercial work and fine art gallery work. He is known in the American comics industry as a cover artist for various books published by DC Comics, as well as for his work for Prada, ESPN and Atlantic Records. His work, which has been collected in numerous volumes, has been compared by the New York Times to that of Maxfield Parrish.

These studies of former pornographic actress Sasha Grey, created in 2008 by the celebrated illustrator James Jean, seem timeless in their stillness and quiet contemplation, a far cry from the fleshy excess and vulgarity of modern pornography. Grey is not seen as an object of sexual desire, but as a beautiful, intelligent, and defiant woman, confident in her sexuality.

James Jean has had a very busy year (solo show at Martha Otero, video with Juxtapoz, monograph Rebus being released) but something a bit unexpected opened up: Jean began developing a line of fine jewelry, scarves, and objects with support from my friends in Japan that has culminated in a new webstore of Jean products, OVMLove.com.