JEAN HESS
Knoxville, Tennessee jeanhess@bellsouth.net
Statement
My vocabulary and palette have been very consistent over time. I am true to an inspiring vision, of light and infinite expansion, that changed my life at age 18. Jung and the mystical poets helped me understand how all this affected my life and work.
Signature elements include: Celestial bodies floating in sky and reflected in water; night skies; luminosity; Aerial perspective; maps and grids; visibly layered imagery including underlying marks; secondary colors such as turquoise, coral, indigo, gold and gray.
I strive to work in a positive, transcendent vein and hope my work brings peace andpleasure, if not surprise, to others. My work is in museums and public collections. I am especially proud that so much of my work is in private homes.
Biography
Born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland, I have lived in many US cities. As with my art, life has been an experiment in embracing what is at hand. To put myself through school, and at times just to keep painting, I have been a telephone operator, computer programmer, insurance claims adjuster, museum gift shop worker, Montessori aide and AMI-certified Montessori teacher, and anthropology museum registrar.
I studied art at Maryland Institute of Art, the University of Maryland, and the University of New Mexico. A BA in art and anthropology from the University of New Mexico, followed by a MA and further field work [ABD] in cultural anthropology at UNM, led to community development work and research for the US Government and major corporations in Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Abiquiu, Atlanta, Dallas.
These days I focus on my garden, volunteer for the Master Gardener programthrough the US Extension Service, and continue to experiment with collage paintings, textiles and mixed-media assemblage
Selective ResumeCollections: Evansville Museum of Art, Science and History [Indiana] Huntsville Museum of Art [Alabama] Knoxville Museum of Art [Tennessee] University of Virginia, Health SciencesCenter Farm Credit Administration - Atlanta Knoxville Convention Center City of Chattanooga St. Mary’s Hospital Heart Institute – Evansville, Indiana Canon USA - Atlanta Manning, Selvage and Lee, Inc., Atlanta National Data Corporation, Atlanta Piedmont National Corporation, Atlanta Capitol Mark Bank, Knoxville John Portman and Associates, Atlanta Gaylord Resort and Convention Center, Nashville Art Department, Eastern Institute of Technology, Napier, New Zealand
Exhibitions: 2021 Collage Artists of America. Picking Up the Pieces. Juror: Lamonte Westmoreland. Honorable Mention. 2021 Association for Visual Arts, Chattanooga. Juried Show. 2021 Covenant College, Chattanooga TN. Solo show. “Aboutness.” September2021 Virtual TART. Taranaki, New Zealand. Solo show. “Jean Hess: Matewan.” October 2021 Alexandria Museum of Art 34th September Competition Juror. Andrew James Wulf Executive Director of the AAM-accredited Albany Museum of Art in Albany, Georgia2021 Tubac [AZ] Center of the Arts “Starry, Starry Night” Jurors: Catherine Nash and Robert Renfrow. 2021 San Diego Museum of Arts. Artists Guild Annual Exhibition. Virtual.2021 Denise Bibro Virtual National open call 2021. Featured Artist among 20. 2021 Upstream Gallery, Hastings on Hudson, NY. “Layers of Time: Works on Paper.” Jurors: David Barnett, Phyllis Famiglietti, Rachel Weatherford Whitlow [KOLAJ INSTITUTE] 2021 National Collage Society. Small Format Show. Santa Monica, CA. 2021. Hon.Men.2021 Floyd Art Center, Virginia. Art Appalachia. Juror: Wendy Earle, Curator of Contemporary Art, SECCA, Winston-Salem.2021 UNC-Asheville. 12th Annual International Drawing Discourse. Publication. 2021 Collage Artists of America. Parallel Dimensions. Juror: John Greco, Josephine Press, Santa Monica, CA. Honorable Mention.2021 Virtual TART: Over 70. Taranaki, New Zealand. 2021 On-line 2021 Maryland Federation of Art. Art on Paper 2021 Juror: Paul Glenshaw, Smithsonian. PriorHuntsville Museum of Art [solo; juried group; invitational group]Knoxville Museum of Art [3-person]Evansville Museum of Art [juried group; museum purchase award]William King Museum – Abingdon, VA [several juried group shows]Clarksville Museum - Tennessee [group]Tennessee Arts Commission – Nashville [solo]Savannah College of Art and Design [3-person]Eastern Institute of Technology – New Zealand [group]University of Alabama - Huntsville [solo]University of Tennessee - Knoxville [solo]University of North Carolina – Charlotte [solo]University of Southern Mississippi – Hattiesburg [invitational]East Tennessee State University [solo; curator for group, juried group]Georgia Institute of Technology [juried group] Medical College of Georgia [juried group]Maryville College - Tennessee [solo]Mississippi State University [juried group]Callanwolde Fine Arts Center - Atlanta [solo]Association for Visual Arts – Chattanooga [solo; invitational group; curator of group]Gray Matters Gallery - Dallas [solo]Gardener Gallery - Atlanta [solo; group]Anthony Ardavin Gallery - Atlanta [solo; two invitational group]McIntosh Gallery – Atlanta [group; invitational]Gallery One - Nashville [3-person]Hanson Gallery – Knoxville [2-person]16 Patton Gallery – Asheville [group]Percy Thompson Gallery – Stratford, NZ [juried group]
NOTE: A comprehensive CV, covering over 40 years, is available on request. This will also include specific places and dates, my own critical writing as well as reviews of my work.
Please also note that I have been affiliated with several private galleries over the years. After 2009 most closed; I have no gallery representation at present.
Signature elements include: Celestial bodies floating in sky and reflected in water; night skies; luminosity; Aerial perspective; maps and grids; visibly layered imagery including underlying marks; secondary colors such as turquoise, coral, indigo, gold and gray.
I strive to work in a positive, transcendent vein and hope my work brings peace andpleasure, if not surprise, to others. My work is in museums and public collections. I am especially proud that so much of my work is in private homes.
Biography
Born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland, I have lived in many US cities. As with my art, life has been an experiment in embracing what is at hand. To put myself through school, and at times just to keep painting, I have been a telephone operator, computer programmer, insurance claims adjuster, museum gift shop worker, Montessori aide and AMI-certified Montessori teacher, and anthropology museum registrar.
I studied art at Maryland Institute of Art, the University of Maryland, and the University of New Mexico. A BA in art and anthropology from the University of New Mexico, followed by a MA and further field work [ABD] in cultural anthropology at UNM, led to community development work and research for the US Government and major corporations in Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Abiquiu, Atlanta, Dallas.
These days I focus on my garden, volunteer for the Master Gardener programthrough the US Extension Service, and continue to experiment with collage paintings, textiles and mixed-media assemblage
Selective ResumeCollections: Evansville Museum of Art, Science and History [Indiana] Huntsville Museum of Art [Alabama] Knoxville Museum of Art [Tennessee] University of Virginia, Health SciencesCenter Farm Credit Administration - Atlanta Knoxville Convention Center City of Chattanooga St. Mary’s Hospital Heart Institute – Evansville, Indiana Canon USA - Atlanta Manning, Selvage and Lee, Inc., Atlanta National Data Corporation, Atlanta Piedmont National Corporation, Atlanta Capitol Mark Bank, Knoxville John Portman and Associates, Atlanta Gaylord Resort and Convention Center, Nashville Art Department, Eastern Institute of Technology, Napier, New Zealand
Exhibitions: 2021 Collage Artists of America. Picking Up the Pieces. Juror: Lamonte Westmoreland. Honorable Mention. 2021 Association for Visual Arts, Chattanooga. Juried Show. 2021 Covenant College, Chattanooga TN. Solo show. “Aboutness.” September2021 Virtual TART. Taranaki, New Zealand. Solo show. “Jean Hess: Matewan.” October 2021 Alexandria Museum of Art 34th September Competition Juror. Andrew James Wulf Executive Director of the AAM-accredited Albany Museum of Art in Albany, Georgia2021 Tubac [AZ] Center of the Arts “Starry, Starry Night” Jurors: Catherine Nash and Robert Renfrow. 2021 San Diego Museum of Arts. Artists Guild Annual Exhibition. Virtual.2021 Denise Bibro Virtual National open call 2021. Featured Artist among 20. 2021 Upstream Gallery, Hastings on Hudson, NY. “Layers of Time: Works on Paper.” Jurors: David Barnett, Phyllis Famiglietti, Rachel Weatherford Whitlow [KOLAJ INSTITUTE] 2021 National Collage Society. Small Format Show. Santa Monica, CA. 2021. Hon.Men.2021 Floyd Art Center, Virginia. Art Appalachia. Juror: Wendy Earle, Curator of Contemporary Art, SECCA, Winston-Salem.2021 UNC-Asheville. 12th Annual International Drawing Discourse. Publication. 2021 Collage Artists of America. Parallel Dimensions. Juror: John Greco, Josephine Press, Santa Monica, CA. Honorable Mention.2021 Virtual TART: Over 70. Taranaki, New Zealand. 2021 On-line 2021 Maryland Federation of Art. Art on Paper 2021 Juror: Paul Glenshaw, Smithsonian. PriorHuntsville Museum of Art [solo; juried group; invitational group]Knoxville Museum of Art [3-person]Evansville Museum of Art [juried group; museum purchase award]William King Museum – Abingdon, VA [several juried group shows]Clarksville Museum - Tennessee [group]Tennessee Arts Commission – Nashville [solo]Savannah College of Art and Design [3-person]Eastern Institute of Technology – New Zealand [group]University of Alabama - Huntsville [solo]University of Tennessee - Knoxville [solo]University of North Carolina – Charlotte [solo]University of Southern Mississippi – Hattiesburg [invitational]East Tennessee State University [solo; curator for group, juried group]Georgia Institute of Technology [juried group] Medical College of Georgia [juried group]Maryville College - Tennessee [solo]Mississippi State University [juried group]Callanwolde Fine Arts Center - Atlanta [solo]Association for Visual Arts – Chattanooga [solo; invitational group; curator of group]Gray Matters Gallery - Dallas [solo]Gardener Gallery - Atlanta [solo; group]Anthony Ardavin Gallery - Atlanta [solo; two invitational group]McIntosh Gallery – Atlanta [group; invitational]Gallery One - Nashville [3-person]Hanson Gallery – Knoxville [2-person]16 Patton Gallery – Asheville [group]Percy Thompson Gallery – Stratford, NZ [juried group]
NOTE: A comprehensive CV, covering over 40 years, is available on request. This will also include specific places and dates, my own critical writing as well as reviews of my work.
Please also note that I have been affiliated with several private galleries over the years. After 2009 most closed; I have no gallery representation at present.