Featured Artist of the Month: June 2020
The Art of Painting
Carole Jury is both a photographer and an abstract painter who combines the two mediums of expression in her process, starting from a photograph and then transposing it to a painting.
Her signature resides in her broad textured strokes, her ability to capture shadows and lights and her eye for color. Working mainly in oils but also in acrylics, Carole likes to play with materials to express herself: her paintings can be made either on canvas, wood or aluminum, often incorporating leather or fabrics.
Q: I like to start at the beginning, so I would love to hear more about where you're from, and when/how you discovered art?
When I arrived in the United States from Lyon six years ago, nothing I imagined at the time was even close to me becoming of a professional artist.
However this new life style encouraged my desire and my freedom to paint. American culture is a facilitator to live this kind of challenge because becoming an artist does not need a diploma in art. Here, it’s less conventional than Europe, for example. Everyone has a chance to build their own career and many exhibitions or contests are opened for emerging artists.
In High School and university, I studied arts by optional courses, even if my career in France was oriented towards human resources and communications. During more than fifteen years, I kept art as hobby. It's this family expatriation that gave me wings to rebuild something new...Thus, I built my artist path overtime, it’s what I am today: a French born artist - an abstract painter based in Princeton, NJ. I am completely engaged everyday in my art. I was also always passionate about photography and painting. When I started to put up my art, I wanted to join these two mediums to serve my artistic approach. It’s what I did! All my Series are inspired by a photography and the story always started with the same process.
Q: I know that you are an abstract painter and wondered how you came into your current style and whether you experimented with other styles/mediums in the past?
Through my artistic expression, I give my emotional feeling translated by textures, overlays. I research transparency and opacity, brightness and darkness...Only the abstract way responded to my waiting for expressing what I wanted to say. Many artists express their emotions through figurative work where they make bodies, faces…,add speech... But, in my case I want to leave the spectator free to feel his own emotions by visiting my work.
My statement:
“A painting needs to be made one’s own. It’s a kind of secret space where everyone can find one’s own personal refuge. Through painting, I feel anything is possible… The viewer can imagine anything and everything he wants. My reliefs and colors allow for countless interpretations. Then, the viewer will have made my painting his own.”
Q: What do you love the most about what you do - and what are the biggest challenges?
I think there are two answers to this question.
Firstly, being an artist brings a lot freedom but a lot of incertitude on the plan of the professional stability. You have this responsibility, like any entrepreneur, to build your own business in order to survive. It’s a big part of your daily activity because you have to find galleries, exhibitions… You can’t wait on somebody to help you. Sometimes you can be alone face to a difficult and complex environment where you have to fight and be strong! The art world can be very hard with artists! So, it’s one of biggest challenge in an artist’s life.
Secondly, I love to be challenge myself with new technical aspects and research new way of expression. My sponsor Daler-Rowney supports me on this bringing me new supplies to develop my art. I like exploring new materials and new effects for my creativity. I’m completely passionated by this aspect of my job. And it’s always a great feeling when art collectors, who know my artwork, are surprised by a new series, a new technical approach. It means a lot to me!
Q: Do you feel you have a mission or vision as an artist - any particular thing you hope to communicate or provide through your work?
To give substance to an idea, an emotion or a feeling, to give it thickness, to make it real by finally creating an object, it’s like giving birth, an existence in its own right. This frenzy of building textures gives my works a reason to be. Unconsciously perhaps, we wish through creation to give an identity, a responsibility for the trace that we leave behind.
Furthermore, all my series are inspired by a photo I took, I want to give my own interpretations in many regards of what I see in the photography. This is also to show that a single image can cause more interpretations and it depends on your point of view when you look at it... It is in some ways the principle of crossed glances that is used traditionally for analyzing a philosophical work.
Q: Who or what most inspires you and influences your work? (artists or otherwise)
I prefer to speak about influencers. If I could summarize, my influencers are many but Soulages could be the one who supports me for understanding how it is possible to bring lightness in my painting. I am also fascinated by the movement brought by Jackson Pollock, in love with the crazy imagination of Salvador Dali, interested by exploration of colors by Paul Klee and conception by contemporary interior designers … Artists from other domains, like writers, dancers, sociologists, psychologists...are other great creative resources. I also draw my inspiration and energy from them.
Q: Tell us more about any projects you're currently working on, or upcoming shows (either online or eventually in person)?
Many events are postponed or cancelled during the coronavirus epidemic and it has been difficult to plan an exhibition since the beginning of the confinement. But I took advantage of this time to prepare my next exhibition called “itinerancy#3” by “Women Artists from France to USA”. I founded this group of artists one year ago and we have already exhibited in Paris, France, New Hope (PA) and NYC. Three talented French women artists - Gaëlle Hintzy-Marcel (sculptor), Marine Futin (drawer), Rachel B (photographer-mix media) are part of this group. Working with them on the scenography is very interesting and always a great challenge because our art is different with very complementary. Each of us brings their own singularity what enriches us. We scheduled our next exhibition in October in Chelsea (NYC) and we hope that it can be realized. Fingers crossed!
I am also organizing a “Solo Show” in Lyon (France) in December. Lyon is my hometown and people are impatient to be able to visit my art and on my side I am very enthusiastic to show my work in person to people who have supported me since the beginning.
Learn more about Carole and view her work here!
La Vie En Rose
Lagoon Series