Fantasy National Juried Exhibition Online Catalog

Hello, all! My collage, Waterbear Parade, is featured in the online catalog of Arc Gallery and Studios for their national juried exhibition, “Fantasy.” Here is a link for your viewing pleasure:

https://publuu.com/flip-book/11582/1027992

I’m on page 11! If you’re in San Francisco, you can see my work digitally at Arc Gallery and Studios from May 11th-June 8th. The address is 1246 Folsom Street (between 8th and 9th streets), San Francisco, CA. Here is a link with all the info: https://www.arc-sf.com/fantasy.html.

If you go, please let me know!

Collage for Coping and for Play

Now that it is May and World Collage Day is almost upon us (May 14!), I wanted to share an insight that I’ve discovered over the past three months.

First, we had Februllage, (@februllage), an entire month of collage prompts organized by Miss. Printed and Rhed Fawell. Then there was Marchollage, organized by Rachel Morris (@FiveByFiveCreativity) because Februllage became a lifeline for her after her parents’ passing. She created Marchollage to cope and to connect with other artists. She is not alone in creating collage as a coping method. I am one of them, and we are many. I was unable to participate in Marchollage because I signed up for CollageLab’s Spring Fling, a month long collage extravaganza, but I will definitely try to participate next year!

In getting to know the other artists who were participating in CollageLab’s Spring Fling, many of them had a similar story to mine and Rachel’s: crisis led them to collage. I began collage at the beginning of my struggles with mental health, and several participants and instructors in the Spring Fling echoed that they had taken up collage to cope with mental health issues, the pandemic, or personal crisis. Now that I am a part of the Pittsburgh Collage Collective (@pghcollagecollective on IG), several members have also said that collage helped them get through their mental health struggles, whether from circumstance, brain chemicals, or addiction.

Collage is mindfulness meditation in action. It’s very satisfying to take unlike parts and create something entirely new. The action of cutting requires all of your attention, as does the composing. It’s hard to think about anything else but the present moment when cutting, composing, or looking for that something yellow that needs to go just right there. It’s creating order from chaos, or the other way around. It’s also a way to play! In the Spring Fling, we learned about just playing to see what kinds of effects we could create with different materials. Collage can be anything that is attached to another thing, and the options are endless. No rules except your own. If you have been struggling in some way, tear something up and glue it back together. It may help a little. <3

A small collage I made just to play.

Update: New Things on the Way!

It has been too long, dear readers! I hope you are all well, and have experienced some form of sunshine in the past few days. The gray of winter really puts a damper on things, so I am glad spring is upon us in the Northern Hemisphere.

I just wanted to update everyone on what I have been working on:

  1. I will be moving from RedBubble to Threadless Artist Shops because the user interface is more friendly, so stay tuned for a new shop link here and in my LinkTree on Instagram.

  2. I am also finalizing a journal/sketchbook for people aged 7-700. It’s super cute, so I hope artists big and small enjoy using their imagination and having some fun:)

  3. The National Collage Society’s Small Format Show features collages that all measure 4x6 inches. I won an award for my entry, Astronaut in the Ocean! The show will be online and run from May 14-September 30th. You can access the show here.

  4. Finally, more painting. I really wish I were a vampire so that I could stay up all night painting. And learning the piano. But oh, well. As I said in my last post, rest and play are essential for optimal productivity and living itself. So in addition to sunshine, I hope you all take that nap or color in your coloring book, because those are important things, too.

Enjoy your day today, and I’ll see you next time!

World Collage Day!

Hi, all!

I’ve been a bit on a hiatus while creating illustrations for a psychology book and working hard for the money, but on Saturday, May 11, I’m putting everything on hold for World Collage Day. I’ll be spending the whole day cutting and pasting, and thank goodness! I’ve missed it so! Join me on Saturday while we cut and paste the day away! Tag me @jenisforlove on Instagram and Twitter with your creations, and I’ll show off my progress throughout the day! If you aren’t into collage, I hope you do you in some way, whether artistically or otherwise. Shine on, lovers!

Behold new content!

I have updated, dear readers!  Enjoy the hot pink text and feast your eyes upon new things in almost every section!  There is brand new and new-to-you work in Collage, Painting, Illustration, Sculpture, and Sketches and Fun Stuff.  I have also created a Printmaking section for your viewing pleasure with prints from this summer that range from etching to lithography.  Check out my About page for an actual photo of me with updated info about what I am currently doing, and feel free to contact me with any questions or comments.  Thank you for visiting and viewing!  

P.S. Keep your eyes peeled in December/January for new Public Art work!  It's a collaboration piece...