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Artist Profile: Jenn Porreca's Lucky Star
- Author: Vivianne Lapointe
- Posted on: Monday September 28, 2009 at 10:00 AM
- Filed under: art, exclusive, interview
Bred from a stone mason mother & a classical musician father, Jenn Porreca spent her early years traveling rather unconventionally - between England, Saudi Arabia and Pennsylvania before landing in the Bay Area at the age of 21. Painting is a way for this self-taught artist to share her unique, quixotic vision of the world. Though Jenn has been working around the clock to prepare two upcoming exhibitions in December, one at Scope during Art Basel Miami, and a second one the following week in New York City, we grabbed a quick chat with her:
Describe your style in 3 words: Honest, raw, poetic
There are a lot of East Asian influences in your work - Japanese manga for instance. How have your travels inspired your art? Ahhh, this question often comes up. I have been to Asia a number of times, but not yet to Japan. Without getting too personal, lets just say that i have a strong Asian and European influence in my life. I have been fortunate enough to travel a great deal and have spent alot of time in the Middle East, Europe and in the Asia-Pacific. This 'wanderlust' has had a huge affect on my outlook. I also think its interesting to use painting as a way of visual communication. People think "Japanese" because the eyes in my work are slanted a certain way, but they often forget that there are so many other countries in Asia. The skin tone of these women is fair as well.....the patterns in the clothes from other places. I'm painting my view of the world.
Which other artist(s) most impressed/influenced you over the last year? There's a lot out there for us all to witness these days, and so it's hard to choose. This year, I've been really interested in fashion design, interior design, and textiles for inspiration. Diane Von Furstenberg's prints are amazing, as are vintage Vera Neumann scarves, which i started to collect recently... I always watch Christian Lacroix and Dior runways for visual candy. Interior designers are great to look at as well. I like Jonathan Adler and Kelly Wearstler.
You painted on a mini grand piano before. Which other mediums, other than canvases, are you willing to explore? Anything, everything. I actually started out painting on found wood I would gather off of the street which later evolved into large scale canvases. From time to time I go back to painting on found objects to remember my history. I'd really like to do some projects in textile design or fashion design for theater one day.
Favorite painting of yours? Its actually hard for me to look back at older works because I'm always looking to what I want to do in the future. My favorite paintings are those I will make in ten years from now. There is so much to see and learn.
What can we expect from your two shows in December? Evolution, looser but more comfortable lines, bolder color palettes, and emotion. I've been working on portrayal of emotion through facial expressions and making my figurative work more tangible. I'm also working on a very large painting which will show at Opera Gallery in NY on December 10th. Right now, this painting feels like my opus, though i'm sure its just another step towards larger paintings in general.
You're embracing new media and technology, and you're well aware that these new outlets may change forever the way traditional artists distribute their work. Is that a good thing or a bad thing? I think it's an amazing thing. The Internet and these various social media outlets are letting people be self-made. There are no more gatekeepers. But the same thing holds true as it did before, you have to be lucky, and I feel blessed with luck.
Psst! - she's on Twitter! Follow her @jennporreca
Favorite quote: "There are cracks in everything, that's how the light gets in" - Leonard Cohen
Favorite color: I'm still trying to mix the perfect blue-green....I've been trying for years
Favorite Justin Timberlake song: "Like I Love You"
What can we expect from your two shows in December?
Evolution, looser but more comfortable lines, bolder color palettes, and emotion. I've been working on portrayal of emotion through facial expressions and making my figurative work more tangible. I'm also working on a very large painting which will show at Opera Gallery in NY on December 10th. Right now, this painting feels like my opus, though i'm sure its just another step towards larger paintings in general.
Which artist would you say has most inspired / impressed you in the last year?
There's alot out there for us all to witness these days so its hard to choose. This year i've been really interested in fashion design, interior design, and textiles for inspiration. Diane Von Furstenberg's prints are amazing, as are vintage Vera Neumann scarves which i started to collect recently....I always watch Christian Lacroix and Dior runways for visual candy. Interior designers are great to look at as well like Jonathan Adler, Kelly Wearstler.
You are How have your travels inspired you?
Ahhh, this question often comes up. I have been to asia a number of times, but not yet to Japan. Without getting too personal, lets just say that i have a strong Asian and European influence in my life. I have been fortunate enough to travel a great deal and have spent alot of time in the middle east, europe and in the Asia - Pacific. This 'wanderlust' has had a huge affect on my outlook. I also think its interesting to use painting as a way of visual communication. People think "japanese" because the eyes in my work are slanted a certain way, but they often forget that there are so many other countries in Asia. The skin tone of these women is fair as well.....the patterns in the clothes from other places. I'm painting my view of the world.
You have worked on a mini grand piano for a piece. Which other mediums, other than canvases, are you willing to explore?
Anything, everything. I actually started out painting on found wood i would gather off of the street which later evolved into large scale canvases. From time to time i go back to painting on found objects to remember my history. I'd really like to do some projects in textile design or fashion design for theater one day.
You're embracing new media and technology, and you're well aware that these new outlets may change forever the way traditional artists distribute their work. Is that a good thing or a bad thing?
I think its an amazing thing. The internet and these various social media outlets are letting people be self-made. There are no more gatekeepers. But the same thing holds true as it did before, you have to be lucky, and I feel blessed with luck.
Favorite painting of yours, and why? (was it one from the pics you sent me?) Its actually hard for me to look back at older works because i'm always looking to what i want to do in the future.
My favorite paintings are those i will make in ten years from now. There is so much to see and learn.
Describe your style in 3 words.
honest, raw, poetic
Favorite quote:
"there are cracks in everything, that's how the light gets in" - Leonard Cohen (courtesy Ladyshark66 on Twitter)
Favorite color:
I'm still trying to mix the perfect blue-green....i've been trying for years
Favorite Justin Timberlake song: "Like I Love You"
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COMMENTS
“quixotic - i love this word - such a great word - had it as my mood on myspace(which i no longer have) for so long - just cuz i loved the word - the word unlike myspace - def worth keeping - very cool lady - i like that her favorite artwork are painting not yet done - cool answer - another nice article - thx”
