~ERIN JENSEN . . 28th Annual Jersey City Art & Studio Tour / Community Center / Pershing Field
subtext: symbolist
seekers of undiscovered . . gems !!
sometimes called folk art, outsider art & just plain . . vibrant emotional & expressive art /
if you aren’t (solely) into . . certified labels & careers.
this is YOUR . . weekend.
Go forth & FORAGE !!!!
hey, y’all !!
meet ERIN JENSEN . . .
my Jersey City Heights – BFF & partner in all things thrifting, funny, family & . . cool.
what can I say ?
some people are just natural-born funny, and innate creative.
well, right off-the-bat funny: Erin is not one drop Irish, she’s from sturdy Welsh & Swiss, with a little Danish thrown in there / immigrant stock . . the tough pioneers who came to this country more than a century ago – to log the forests, settling in the west, Washington State, right on the coast. growing up, she used to visit her maternal grandparents there all the time, so there’s def some of that western folklore in them there genes.
but, she actually grew up in Santa Barbara, California . . so she’s a California girl, through & through. her family home was classic mid-century modern, with a great view of the ocean, and she’s always, always, been interested in art, art history & illustration.
I find the Welsh genes of note / so ancient deeply pagan & magical.
this is so classic – naive ‘femme’ symbolism / or what !!
reaching deep in, I so love art – in the wild.
raw spaces, basement studios, etc, etc.
you know – where they come to life, in the secret spaces.
like mushrooms.
Erin has 2 boys, interestingly . . her hubby Noe is of Mexican descent, growing up on a horse farm, in Oaxaca . . which Erin has visited many times / so you can see the Mexican ‘flores’ influence blooming throughout – both in color palette & folk art subjects, as well.
‘flores’.
this one seems very folk art, but different from the others. she says it’s based on a famous ‘European’ painting. it strikes me as very ‘Russian’ / it reminds me of ‘Fiddler on the Roof’.
which is a funny thought / Old World Northern European meets southern Mexican / via California Beach Boys . . . and comes out: Yiddish ?
Erin Jensen’s work . . .
can be found in the Vietnam Vets Community Center – at Pershing Field, up in the Heights.
the price range on the works is: approx $400-$600.
they are variously, oil or acrylic paint – on canvas.
the show at the Pershing Field venue was curated by long-time / Art Tour organizers: DIANE LOMBARDI & ELAINE JAMES.
so, Yeah, go forth and . . . FORAGE / buy LOCAL !!!!!!!!!!
there’s some real good art – up here in the Heights !!!!!!!!
PHOTOS: NANCY SMITH