Contemporary Fine Art by Jessica Torrant

Jessica Torrant

Ellington, CT - United States

ARTIST STATEMENT: I make art because I feel a need to make my own mark in the world. I think ultimately that's what all artists want to do; we all just have very different marks to make. I'm driven to share what's inside my mind and soul, to explore an abstract visual language that can translate emotional, physical and spiritual experiences in ways that words cannot. As a creator, I have little to no control over what my creations will inspire in others. My work is intentionally open to interpretation and in that way acts as a mirror for the viewer's state of mind and being.

My medium of choice is acrylic paint, although I learned to paint in college with oils. The fast drying time of acrylic paint fits with my impulsive and, at times, impatient relationship with paint - go, go, go, full speed ahead! I love the various effects one can achieve with acrylics - from thick, impasto surfaces to thinned watercolor-like effects. I like to work in a way that is always experimenting, discovering new techniques and finding inspiration in the now. Sometimes planning is involved, but more often than not it's just me, paint, a blank canvas, and whatever the Muse is whispering into my ear at that moment.

As an artist, it's my goal to make work that really resonates with people on an intimate level. Something that is beautiful on the surface but also has much deeper stories to tell or bring forth. Through my commitment to my creativity, I also hope to inspire others to follow their own creative spirit and see where it takes them. I want people to know that art doesn't have to be so serious - it can be fun, light, playful - an adventure!

ARTIST WEBSITES:
Original Art Shop - http://jessicatorrant.etsy.com
Buy original contemporary art by Jessica Torrant.

Art & Life Blog - http://jessicatorrant.blogspot.com
Updates from the studio, new paintings, artist interviews and creative musings.

Green Garden Stamps - http://greengardenstamps.etsy.com
Hand carved rubber stamps designed by Jessica Torrant.

Facebook Fan Page - http://facebook.com/JessicaTorrant

ARTIST BIO: I grew up on a tobacco farm in rural northern Connecticut, an only child with a deep love of nature and the arts. I enjoyed dance, theater, singing, crafts and of course, the visual arts. After an art focused high school education, I won a town scholarship towards my Fine Art degree, which I earned in 1999 from the University of New Hampshire. I got a solid, classical art foundation at UNH and in my junior year I went to the University of California Santa Cruz for a semester as part of the National Student Exchange Program. The west coast art scene opened me up to a new-found love of contemporary abstract art and I took that home with me when I returned to New England. After college, I worked various side jobs to pay the rent and painted in corners of little apartment bedrooms like many newly graduated art kid do. It took me some time to find my voice and the confidence to start getting my work out there. When I returned to my home state of Connecticut (to the home I live in today) in 2001, I had the space to work and began taking all of it to the next level.

Since then I've made and sold hundreds of paintings, drawings and mixed media works that have been collected around the world. I've exhibited my art in juried and international shows and developed an online following. After several years working in a mill studio forty minutes away from my home, I now have a backyard studio that is entirely dominated by art and I love it, it's a life long dream fulfilled. I am married to the writer Robert Duperre and together we share the same vision of a creative, fun and fulfilled life. I'm blessed to be a step mom to three amazing children and we have a one eyed wonder dog named Leo that graces our family with lots of play and happy love. I'm so happy with my life here in the country, able to connect with art collectors, artists and fans all over the world through the internet. It's amazing the connections that can be made across the miles.

I look to the future with the same goal I always have - to keep painting, keep challenging myself, go deeper, take it further.