ABOUT THE ARTIST
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ARTIST BIOGRAPHY
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Jenna is a multidisciplinary artist from Wiltshire. Her early exposure to fine art came at the age of four, when she vividly recalls standing in front of Dalí's La Gare de Perpignan at the Ludwig Museum in Cologne, where she spent her early childhood. She began her formal studies in Art, Design, and Media Practice at Kingston School of Art, before moving to Florence to receive traditional training in master oil painting techniques at the Charles Cecil Studio. In July 2023, Jenna held her first solo exhibition, titled When The Stream Walks On The Shore, in Florence, Italy. In January 2024, she showcased two life-sized, energetic mirrors as part of the group exhibition Wunderkammer in collaboration with Polimoda, held at Aquaflor Firenze, Florence, Italy. Her second solo exhibition, Dual Currents: A Utopian Longing in an Age of Ecological Destruction, featuring vivid, symbolic drawings and paintings, took place in London in September. Two of Jenna’s paintings are currently on display in the group exhibition This and Other Worldly Glimpse, London. Although she was offered a place to study Theology and Religion at the University of Oxford, Jenna has chosen to dedicate herself fully to her artistic career. She is currently working from her studio in Marlborough.
ARTIST STATEMENT
Jenna’s paintings explore personal transmutation through the symbolic language of nature. Her meditative images express a vision of unity beneath all forms and an appreciation of the transient nature of life. With figures immersed in water and solid objects dissolving into waves of energy, Jenna explores the dance between matter and spirit, navigating the shifting boundary where the tangible meets the intangible. Through contrasting colours and layers of flowing brushstrokes, Jenna aims to capture the essence of this dynamic interplay, revealing the dualities that define the human experience. Each piece is a meditation on the contradictions within us- light and shadow, hope and despair, attraction and repulsion, hurting and healing. Her approach to imagery and exploration of pairs of opposites resonates with the metaphysical ideals that William Blake aimed for. The impact of classical training combines with dynamic expressionism in Jenna's oil paintings, as she plays with the balance between controlled and intuitive mark-making, of maintaining and dissolving form. By using sfumato and flowing brushstrokes, she aims to transport her viewers into a state of presence. Jenna recognises her practice as a form of alchemy, as her artworks are both expressions and invocations of transformation.
