Former Metallica bassist Jason Newsted’s artwork will be featured as a highlight of the upcoming Art Miami Fair (December 5th -10th), which debuts in a new location on Biscayne Bay this year, reports Eileen Kinsella of Artnet News.

Newsted’s large-scale paintings will be featured in a booth for the Perry J. Cohen Foundation, which Art Miani Director Nick Korniloff and his wife Pamela Cohen founded in memory of their son Perry, who was lost at sea off the Florida coast in July 2015. Half of all proceeds from the sale of the artwork will go to the PJC Foundation, which supports arts, marine, and wildlife education and preservation, among other initiatives. Newsted’s paintings are priced between $20,000 and $125,000.

The musician recounted how Korniloff, a heavy metal fan, had come to his house to see his “jam room” this past February. Korniloff inquired about the large, outsider-style paintings “hanging between the drums and amplifiers,” and wanted to know who the artist was. “I said ‘It’s my stuff, man.” Impressed, Korniloff asked if there was more, which prompted Newsted to show him more than a decade’s worth of his art stash.

Asked about the parallels between his life in music and his artistic life, Newsted, replied, “there are definitely commonalities because it’s show business and you still have to deal with the business and legal side so that’s very relatable.” On the other hand, being a solo artist painting on his own “means I’m not on a team. I don’t have to answer to anybody, but that part I actually like because of the control factor. I like to take the bad with the good. When it’s bright, it’s super-bright, and when it’s not, you’ve got to take that too.”

As if Art Miami is not keeping him busy enough, the Palm Beach Cultural Council is opening a separate Newsted exhibit, The Art of Rawk, on December 1st, a few days ahead of Art Miami. Curated by Korniloff, it will show everything from his paintings, drawings, video installations, and sculpture, to musical instruments used on famous Metallica and other recordings and even, says Newsted, a bass-bearing action figure in his likeness.

Newsted’s current band, Chop House, will have two live performances during the show, and a portion of the sale proceeds of artwork will also go toward the PJC Foundation and a music education charity called Little Kids Rock.

To learn more, and view some of Newsted's paintings, click here.