Jen is a brand designer and artist living in Raleigh, North Carolina. A child of the 80’s, the fashion, color and patterns from that decade are palpable influences in her painting. Probably because her mom owned a clothing store at that time, and Jen spent countless hours amongst the Velcro shoulder pads, floral prints and color-blocked power suits that adorned the racks.

Her art is bold, playful and alive — a mix of abstract and graphic. With a maximalism approach reconfigured into minimalism technique, she develops layer upon textured layer while staying true to a simple, discovered visual story.

In 2020, Jen — a wife and mother of two — was forced to strip away her own textured layers of distractions and focus on her family and her art. What emerged from that time inside is now a prolific and cathartic personal renaissance.

Pulling inspiration from her past, living in the moment and trusting her intuition has led to features in galleries across the Southeast and private collections around the world.

Artist Statement

An 80’s child and maximalist at heart, I approach my paintings with whatever feels right in the moment, experimenting with layers of color, texture and pattern. To keep my paintings from looking like a midlife crisis, I work to pull together a simplified, visual story. At times my work represents a journey and other times I strive to replicate the energy and rhythm of nature in a distinct way. Each painting is an evolution from the last as my practice is more about discovery than repetition.

Jen Matthews