Jennifer Pate is an Art of Austin artist! Get to know more about her and her work!
Jennifer Pate
AoA – How long have you been in Austin and how did you find your way here?
Jennifer – I’ve been in Austin almost 7 years now, initially moved here for my BFA degree from UT. Since graduation in 16’, I started my own business, Maridad Studio creating and selling affordable art.
AoA – When did you realize that you were an artist?
Jennifer – I’ve thought about this question a lot actually. I realize now that I have always been fascinated by the arts, whether that be dance, music, or fine art. For me, it was difficult to choose which form I could best express myself with until I found painting in 2011. It was a lot like falling in love. I began to think of myself as an artist because I had voice to share. Since, I’ve been honing in on my craft and within the past year have created business based off a series of watercolor illustrations.
AoA – Can you speak to your art training?
Jennifer – I began taking art classes in Middle School when I first moved to Texas. My teachers from that point forward were very encouraging in motivating me to keep making art. I was interested in all forms of art so I was constantly jumping from medium to medium. This was a great way to learn a wide variety of skills but it wasn’t until college that I began to feel more inclined to pursue oil painting. Figure drawing was also a course I took regularly but never gave it any importance, it was just a way I enjoyed staying fresh on my observation skills. After graduation and loosing my studio space I looked to other mediums to make money but still doing what I loved. I became more familiar with Adobe products as well as a more non-toxic painting practice. Creating watercolor illustrations became my creative escape from reality, where my current series bloomed from.
AoA – Where do you derive inspiration from?
Jennifer – Inspiration stems directly from my way of being and living.I believe every little detail can describe a time and place within a piece of art so I tend to be picky about which I choose. Taking my own reference photos has always been my favorite way to work through a composition. Like most people, I take hundreds of photos on my phone of some seemingly pointless things. And yet I would be horrified if a stranger went through my Camera Roll but at the same time that’s what makes the work all the more fascinating to deconstruct. I can’t fathom the number of photos people around the world capture daily and knowing thousands of those photos will go unseen by most people. As an artist I find it to be my duty to expose this way of living, as I believe it directly reflects a new era of making art.
AoA – Can you tell us a little bit about your work?
Jennifer – My work questions why we eat what we eat, and what eating healthy actually means. Their meanings are much broader than the food composition and health outcomes considered by scientists. In response, I’ve decided to break down these barriers and relationships found in the food we eat through my art practice. By creating anthropomorphic food illustrations the viewer can place themselves as the subject which can surface feelings of comfort, joy, pleasure, memory, and sensuality. Food triggers these emotions within us and play a vital role in our life. I hope to expand on this and learn more as the series continues.
AoA – Can you talk a little about your creative processes in creating?
Jennifer – I touched on this for a second when speaking about where my inspiration lies. I take a lot of photos with my phone or camera and use them to create my illustrations, which is just another way of me saying I take a lot of pictures of food. The inspiration for the body positions derived more from my imagination and being inspired by the movement created in dance. I would pair these two together to explain a relationship I felt I had with the food. It became a dialog that had a lot of potential and I’ve been playing with it ever since.
AoA – If you could own one piece from a living artist, who would it be?
Jennifer – This artist I follow on instagram, Cristian Berman (@cruizberman) He creates these complex somewhat abstract spaces that feel very surreal. I’ve been obsessed with his craft,color pallet, and way of making for a while now and would love to own a piece.
AoA – What else do you enjoy besides making art?
Jennifer – I enjoy gardening, yoga, farmers markets, hiking, traveling, a good comedy show, cooking large meals with friends and family, this is beginning to feel like a dating profile.
AoA – Where can we find your work? Do you have any shows planned for the future?
Jennifer – I am collaborating with 3 other female artists for an EAST Collective show called Femme-Easta, more details on that soon. If you’re interested in meeting me in person to buy my art prints I will have the upcoming shows; Aug 18th, Cherry on Top Marfa & Sep 15, Makers Market Mueller ATX. Hope to see you there!
Connect with Jennifer!
