art

Maria Prymachenko: A Dove Has Spread Her Wings and Asks for Peace

~ jama ~ 9 Comments
“Dumplings on the Shelf” by Maria Prymachenko (1979)

I first discovered Maria Prymachenko’s art while searching online for dumpling paintings about ten years ago.

Her “Dumplings on the Shelf” immediately caught my eye with its bright yellow background, orange crockery, and – what is that – a woman lying on top of the stove?! 

Not something you’d see every day. Of course I had to learn more about one of Ukraine’s most celebrated folk artists. I instantly fell in love with her vibrant colors, precise symmetrical patterns, pretty floral motifs, fantastical beasts, joyous scenes of country life, imaginative details, and of course, the intriguing stories in some of her pictures.

Prymachenko (1908-1997) was born to a peasant family in the village of Bolotnya (about 19 miles from Chernobyl), where she would spend most of her life. Her family taught her a variety of traditional Ukrainian crafts, including embroidery and pysanky (decorating Easter eggs). She also liked to draw and paint.

Once, as a young girl, I was tending a gaggle of geese. When I got with them to a sandy beach, on the bank of the river, after crossing a field dotted with wild flowers, I began to draw real and imaginary flowers with a stick on the sand… Later, I decided to paint the walls of my house using natural pigments. After that I’ve never stopped drawing and painting.

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nine cool things on a tuesday

~ jama ~ 32 Comments

1. March winds are blowing, tiny buds are appearing on trees, it won’t be long before Spring is officially here!

For now, let’s look at how Jenny Beck’s gardens grow – rows of vegetables, flowers, blossoming trees – all set against rolling hills, everything lush, green, flourishing. 

Jenny hails from West Dorset, England, and has been surrounded by gardens and countryside for most of her life. She initially trained in ceramics, decorating pots with images of the English countryside.

Since she enjoyed decorating more than making pots, while working as a gardener she re-trained in illustration, then worked as a freelance illustrator. In addition to selling prints and cards, she works on community art projects and commissions for house and garden paintings.

Visit her Etsy Shop to harvest onions, pick apples, feed the hens, tend the allotment cabbages, and revel in the bucolic. Nothing finer than an English garden!

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jana glatt: population fun

~ jama ~ 8 Comments

Just in case you’re feeling a little low and/or color-starved, here’s some of Jana Glatt’s art to WAKE. YOU. UP!

Colorful, quirky, upbeat and offbeat, Jana’s work is joy personified. Oh, those beady eyes and leetle mustaches! She’s able to convey so much personality with just a few strokes. You can feel the energy and emotion in every picture. Too much fun!

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nine cool things on a tuesday

~ jama ~ 19 Comments

1. Bright cheery colors and a big shot of joy are just what we need to counter the winter doldrums. 

“Daydream painter and magic maker” Julia Eves is a folk artist based in Mississippi who draws her inspiration from nature, her love of animals, and the rich culture of the South.

Julia uses mixed media and bright acrylics to create her pieces, which pulse with life and energy. She paints on both canvas and wood panels. Frida Kahlo is her muse and favorite person to paint.

Visit her Etsy Shop to purchase originals and archival prints. Some of her prints are available at select Home Goods stores. For the latest, check out her Instagram. 

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beloved southern folk artist clementine hunter

~ jama ~ 10 Comments
Clementine Hunter in the 1960s.

I’ve always been fascinated by what compels creatives to make art, especially those who are self taught and persist despite overwhelming odds.

Take Clementine Hunter (pronounced Clementeen), one of the South’s most celebrated folk artists. Though she never learned to read or write, and didn’t begin painting until her 50s, she managed to produce between 5,000 – 10,000 paintings, all while working as a cook and housekeeper at Melrose Plantation in Louisiana.

She is known for her unique and vibrant ‘visual diary’ of rural plantation life in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, an insider’s view of the African American perspective. Not only a pivotal figure in folk art, she’s also remembered as an important social and cultural historian.

Clementine (née Clémence) was born into a French Creole family at Hidden Hill Plantation near Cloutierville in Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana, around Christmas 1886. A descendant of slaves, she was the eldest of seven children. 

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