A: What has your journey to your current artistry been?
J: My mother and my first mother-in-law were artists, and they were an inspiration to me. My
mother-in-law would often take my sons and me into NYC to visit MOMA. When I was
pursuing my doctorate in education in Boston at Northeastern University, I took breaks to go to
the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and to the Museum of Fine Arts. I had always been
interested in crafts and my family was very creative. I began my current journey designing
beaded necklaces, which I sold at craft fairs. I dabbled in photography, but hadn’t really gotten
into other forms of visual art. About 15 or so years ago, a very dear friend of mine died of
cancer, and in my grief, I began painting and exhibited in various galleries, as well as being a
member of several artist associations in Massachusetts.
J: I have little formal training in art, having taken a few art classes at a community college in
Massachusetts. I’ve taken many workshops and online classes.
A: What drew you to your collage style work?
J: About 11 years ago, I began to do more mixed media collage work. I happened to take a mixed media class at an arts program in MA and was hooked. I was fortunate to become involved with a group of women from this program, and we still meet monthly for “Art in the Morning.” We bring our own projects to work on and share resources and skills.
A: Your work appears to use lots of found materials, ‘bits and pieces’ of ‘this and that’. Do you use the materials to guide your work or do you go into each piece with a set idea in mind of what you are creating?
J: I do use a lot of found objects and things I’ve been collecting over the years, like the
bead stash I had from my jewelry design work. My husband has learned to pick up
smashed bottle caps and odd bits of metal. My brother just gave me some handmade
nails from a house renovation. Friends save tea bags and the tags from tea bags for me.
Sometimes I have an idea percolating in my head and pick certain objects I have on
hand, and other times I have no idea where I am going with a piece and just start with a
color or an object and go from there.
A: What does your studio practice look like day-to-day?
J: I am not in the studio every
day but when I am there, sometimes I am organizing my ‘stash’ and sometimes I am
actively working on something. I tend to work in series and often have more than one
piece going at a time so I will gather the things I think I’ll need and just get going. I
sometimes go back and forth between the pieces or work in an assembly line.
A: What has helped you fuel consistent creativity?
J: Going into my studio and “playing” with what I have there – sorting through bins of “stuff”and seeing what emerges. Since I don’t usually have a plan, but allow the work to create itself, just going through my materials is often enough to get me inspired.
A: A lot of your work features beads, costume jewelry, and textiles. Are you at all influenced by garment makers and fashion cycles?
J: Not really, but I do look at the jewelry I’ve collected and decide if I am going to make a contemporary piece or something more vintage. My latest use of the beads is the “Bedazzled” series. This is a collection of women’s faces with beads for hair. I’ve also made a couple beaded
mannequins, and certainly beads are often incorporated into my collages.
A: Is this your first time participating in the Keene ArtWalk? If not, how many years have you
participated?
J: This will be my third year participating in the Keene ArtWalk. The first
two times I sat out on the sidewalk near the store where my work was and worked on
small mixed media collages. At one of those a little girl about 8 years old stopped and
was watching me. She finally said “What are you doing?” My response was that I was
gluing paper on cards and making ‘Artist Trading Cards.’ I then explained the process and I let her pick a couple to start her own art collection.
A: What are you most excited to display at this year’s Keene ArtWalk?
J: My space is at Keene Cookies on West Street. The windows where my art will be are fairly small, so that will limit my choices. I am thinking of displaying my “Cuppa Comfort” series –
thinking that tea goes well with cookies. What better juxtaposition than a teacup and
cookies?
A: Looking through your pieces between cut out images in magazines and printed words off paper, there is a mood board type of spirit I find in your work. Do you ever utilize mood boards to organize inspiration for creative projects?
J: I don’t use mood boards in a formal sense but certainly my mood affects my work and
that is reflected in my art. Most of my work is more “go with the flow.”
A: Have you always been drawn to collage work?
J: No, it’s been a process over a few years, but now, I can’t imagine doing much of anything else. I am not drawn to just painting or pastels or other forms of art. I may incorporate paint or pastels into my work, but they would not be the primary focus. I enjoy watching a piece come together as I am playing with it.
A: How do you practice self compassion as an artist in moments of burn out, block, or frustration?
J: I allow myself to get away from it for a bit. I might clean or organize my
studio, or I might just leave my studio and go for a drive.
A: Do you have anything to add?
J: My work is constantly evolving and improving.
Sometimes when I look at something I made even a few years ago, I think “hmm, what
was I thinking?”
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