June 27, 2018

Art & Life with Jenny Guarino

Local Stories

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jenny Guarino.

Jenny, please kick things off for us by telling us about yourself and your journey so far.
I have always loved making things, trying all sorts of crafts and needlework as a child, and the problem solving that went with creating something new. I started my working career as a scientific programmer at the Weather Bureau in Melbourne Australia. It was a brand-new field and played to my love of exploring new technologies in a creative way, this time writing programs to solve weather issues. I was a millennial ahead of my time, switching jobs frequently, and heavily involved in technology. Along the way I took whatever evening classes I could, such as china painting, oil painting and collage, using art as an escape and often expressing the message that our lives have become so busy that there is not enough time for ourselves.

After raising a family, moving from Australia to Hong Kong and then to the USA, I became an empty nester and decided to switch careers, working as an artist full time. I completed a two-year Fine Art diploma, exploring other media such as photography, clay, sculpture and also creative writing and poetry. Still traveling a lot, I found the new iPad fantastic and light to carry with me and allowed me to capture quickly and exactly the colors of what I was seeing when drawing a view. The early iPad software was not as precise and easy to use as now but gave a rough look which suited my generally abstracted drawings. I decided to focus on creating acrylic paintings, inspired by my iPad drawings.

Can you give our readers some background on your art?
I am exploring the color, shape, line and texture of the world around me. I am an Australian, living in America with family and friends spread throughout the globe. I bring my iPad on my travels, capturing the spontaneity of the moment, creating sketches that register the objects that excite and interest me. These drawings are the inspiration and the starting point for my paintings.

I love to get feedback from art lovers about my work and be inspired by their ideas. I ran a Kickstarter project “Drawing Happy” where backers gave me their idea of happy, and for a month, based on their ideas in the form of just a word, or maybe pictures I posted a daily drawing, and explained my thought process behind creating the drawing. My latest work is a detour from acrylic painting with brushes to the abstract world of fluid art. I am enjoying the physicality of using my hands to apply paint and the spontaneous and unpredictable results obtained from pouring different colors and types of paints, mixed with pouring mediums and additives of alcohol and silicone into a creative chemical recipe.

My new abstract poured paintings often end up geographic in nature, because I draw the sky and landscape from the air when I’m flying. I love the shapes and colors of the clouds, mountains, roads and lakes, and I am focused on capturing just the essence of the shape and color because the plane is traveling so fast.

I continue to get feedback when I create my large abstract commission pieces, finding out what the art lover likes about my work, and channeling their energy as well as mine into the art I create for them.

Do you have any advice for other artist? Any lessons you wished you learned earlier?
Don’t be afraid to show your art and hear another people’s opinion. We all see the same work differently, and I am constantly surprised and interested in the way other people interpret my art. Some customers, after seeing some pieces on my website, then saw my work, were surprised at how small it was, and encouraged me to do larger works. These large works have become popular and are the basis of my commission work. Their feedback, both good and bad, helps me clarify my message and improve my work.

Make time, even if it’s a few minutes to create something. Keep working but make sure that it stays fun and enjoyable. If you are blocked or bored, go see an art exhibition or try a totally different class that you’ve never done before. Keep on learning new techniques and experimenting to make sure that your artwork stays new and fresh.

What’s the best way for someone to check out your work and provide support?
My work and contact details are on my website jennyguarino.com, and you can see my most recent pieces on display in my studio at Sabine Street Studios at Sawyer Yards. There is an open studio every second Saturday, and also a Summer Series coming up in July. Three of my pieces are also in the current Habitats exhibition at Sabine street. You can follow my travels on Instagram and twitter @jennyswalkabout, or on Facebook at Jenny Guarino Artist.

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