Jennifer Love Artwork BLOG

Once upon a time, I used to take ballet lessons (for about 10 years).  I quit when I was 14 and realized that my body type (and my love of food and Dr. Pepper) wasn't conducive to being a ballerina. But, I still love watching performances, love the the dance and the beautiful and graceful lines of the dancers, who create art with their body movement. I stumbled across this video on YouTube and thought it was worth sharing.  :)  Hope you enjoy! Click the picture above or Click here to watch

Do you know how to ride a bike? Did you ever have to pick yourself up, dust off your bruised and bloodied knees and try again? I still have gravel in my knees from many a crash in my youth. But, it is also a badge of honor! Proof that the effort I made to learn and improve paid off! And, now that I have the skill, I will never forget, no matter how long it’s been since I got on a bike. Learning to ride a bike is a good metaphor for our art pursuits. Being an artist requires tenacity. It requires dusting ourselves off and trying again. It sometimes even requires my blood, sweat, and tears (literally)! But, over the years, I have learned not to take rejection too personally (although it still stings), and I have persevered - and this is something all artists must do!  In 2003, when I joined the Utah Watercolor Society (UWS), I was anxious to “get going” with my art. I had no idea how competitive the art world was! I made slides of all my best pieces of artwork. I set up a st...

Roses, Peonies, Iris Summer is here! We had a wet, wet, wet spring (an unusual amount of rain for Utah). But, thanks to all that water, I have some beautiful flowers in my yard. This year has also been my personal project push to finish the KonMari tidying and decluttering method to my home. I started KonMari in 2015 (long before the Netflix special)...but, I paused in the middle due to life commitments. (I accepted the nomination to V.P of the Utah Watercolor Society 2016-2017, then President 2017-2018, then Past President 2018-2019).  With the 2019 UWS year closing out at the end of May, I decided I would push through to finish the tidying event in my home that had been on hiatus since 2016. I know, I know...that's not what the book says to do. "Tidy all at once, quickly, in one go." But, life happens! So January 2019 came, and I said to my husband "We're going to get this done!" and we jumped back in to the Komono (miscellaneous) ca...

Background image source: Death to Stock Photos Have you ever encountered a Troll? When we post artwork online, sometimes we get hurtful or controversial comments intended to start an argumentative dialogue. These people are "Trolls." Sometimes we even meet Trolls face-to-face! This happened to me when I posted a copy of my painting "Kokopelli Conga" on Google+.  "Kokopelli Conga" | Watercolor | Jennifer Love I very quickly received a comment from a Google+ user (not someone in my circles) saying that he didn't think he would consider my painting to be "Art" but maybe "art" and asking what did I think? Basically, he was telling me I'm not really an artist and my painting is not worthy to be called Art. Ouch. Well, after my initial reaction of hurt feelings from criticism without any constructive advice or suggestions, I realized what this user was about and what he ...

"Inspiration is for amateurs!"  Have you heard or seen this quote? I have many times, and I believe it as well - in a sense. If we are to be professional artists, that means we show up to work as any other professional would. Some days you have a successful and productive day, others...not so much. But, you plug away at it no matter what if you want to create that paycheck! But, setting that attitude aside for a moment...sometimes artists are also inspired! When we are, we have to act on our inspiration, immediately if possible. And, a lot of times, that inspiration results in something magical. A painting that you truly love, where all the techniques and color harmony and everything just came together. Sometimes it is just a happy accident, when you are experimenting with new ideas and techniques. The question is...once you've created the magic...can you recreate it? What if you did that magical painting on inferior quality materials because you were just experi...

I know it's cliche, but it's so true. Time just gets away from you! My kids are growing right before my eyes...time marches on! Some goals are accomplished, and some are left unfinished - to accomplish another day! I am still in the middle of my #KonMari tidy event. Even though I haven't followed her direction to do it "all at once"...I also don't feel that I quit in the middle. I just had to take a hiatus. Two years of commitment to the Utah Watercolor Society, first as the Vice President, and then the President. My "free time" was non-existent. Now, I am Past President and Communications/Webmaster. But, the demand on my time is significantly less. Last fall, I remodeled my master bedroom, including new paint, pulling up carpet, screwing down squeaky floor boards, and laying carpet tiles. (and yes...I did all the labor). We have an older home, rambler style, built in 1967. It needs a lot of fixing up, and we are slowly trying to work our way thr...