Women Making History: Jenn Porreca
If you look around the M.I.S.S. site, you’ll notice that today is a very art heavy day. As we continue to bring you the latest in the fashion world, we would also like to remind you of how important art should be in our daily lives.
With a new and talented art writer on board, we are also excited to relaunched our Art HERstory series and to continue with today’s theme we are proud to honor San Francisco-based artist, Jenn Porreca as a Women Making History.
We are excited at the possibility that one day our daughters will be writing an Art HERstory feature on the amazing and talented Jenn.
To begin, please read Jenn’s inspiring bio, written by Katie Zuppann of Juxtapoz Magazine:
Jenn Porreca is not afraid to take risks in experimenting with traditionally held rules of artistry. In bridging the distinctive worlds of fine, modern, street, and folk art, Jenn breathes vital life into her unique paintings by infusing her unique outlook on life into each and every piece she composes.
Born in 1977 in England to a pair of creatively inclined parents (her mother a tombstone/monument maker and horse trainer, her father a musician,) artistic energy and constant exploration have long been central to Jenn’s world. The artist spent her youth living in diverse places like Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia and Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, and finally settled in San Francisco at the age of 21. The eclectic San Francsico Bay Area would serve as the perfect breeding ground for this curious, socially aware woman, and she soon found herself involved in non-profit and grant writing work.
However satisfying and successful Jenn found this career sector, she continuously felt a nagging desire to more fully express herself visually, and made the bold decision to focus on her artwork full-time approximately five years ago. In this short period, her aesthetic eye, process, and vision have expanded exponentially, projecting Jenn into a realm of artistic acclaim she once only dreamed of.
Surprisingly, Jenn never attended formal art school; a reality that has helped more than hindered her bold artistry. Her style is unique and she continues to experiment with new techniques and mediums on a regular basis, thus organically feeding into a beautiful and cyclical process of curiosity, knowledge, and experimentation that is literally palpable in her deep and layered paintings. No other artist’s work is quite like Jenn’s, and that’s just the way she likes it.
Citing influences from European silhouette and folklore artists of the early 1900s, San Francisco street art, Japanese Manga, her favorite literature, the collective consciousness, turn of the century typography and European architecture, and the mixed Latin/Asian culture of the Philippines, Jenn’s aesthetic is as emotionally and socially meaningful as it is visually stunning.
True to her restless nature, Jenn is always working on new projects. You’ll be sure to see more of this innovator’s progress and work as she further delves into the bottomless pool of artistic beauty and clarity.
Women Making History: Jenn Porreca
Women Making History: Jenn Porreca
Let’s get into some Q&A with Jenn…
M.I.S.S.: What woman, besides your mom or grandmother, do you find inspirational?
This is hard – I can’t choose…
Lotte Reiniger
Margaret Kilgallen
Louise Bourgeois
M.I.S.S.: How did you get your start?
Driving to Vermont with my mom to choose pieces of granite to buy from the Quarries. She was a stone sculptor. I used to think she was Michaelangelo and that rocks were these amazing things that you could turn something out of nothing. It was amazing.
Now that I’m older I realize how hard she worked for us and that’s how it all started for me.
M.I.S.S.: What’s your favorite piece of art that you’ve created?
The paper birds I use to make when I was four.
Women Making History: Jenn Porreca
M.I.S.S.: Who do you want to work with?
I’m working with them now.
M.I.S.S.: What part of painting is the most challenging and do you dislike the most?
Shutting the world out.
M.I.S.S.: Any advice for ladies who are just starting out in a career path similar to yours?
Work hard and develop your own style.
Music Box by Jenn Porreca
Jenn has an upcoming show at Billy Shire Fine Art in Los Angeles on August 8th called “Music Boxes for the Mini Cinema.”
Please read her lovely artist statement for the show below:
The movies that are our lives will forever play out in history. For some these films will be played out and mass distributed, for others, some might only reach independent film. This body of work plays on the delicate balance of the mystery of life and the reality of our own humanity. In our own struggles to survive and to enjoy all that life has to offer us, we can oftentimes forget to listen for the faint sounds of music in the mini-cinemas of our lives. This body of work celebrates childlike moments set to the sound of thumb-pianos and the steady beat of footsteps, in a whispered attempt to remind the viewer to dance.
In December, you can find Jenn at Scope at Art Basel, Miami with UK-based Mauger Modern and in 2010, she’ll grace the Opera Gallery in NYC with her art.
For more on Jenn Porreca, please visit the following links:
www.jennporreca.com
artofporreca.blogspot.com
twitter.com/jennporreca
