ZOOM | SPRING 2024

the sunshine coast magazine
J
an Jensen's evocative abstract expressionist painting is
a delight. Her restrained use of colour gives a spacious
feel to these images, as if a breeze could blow through
each layer. Some paintings might suggest distant
mountains and valleys, others the wafting of a colourful or
diaphanous scarf. Yet Jensen does not plan her paintings
in any way; each mark informs the next. She explains:
“I am a process driven artist – each mark or series of marks
creates the space for the next. Each work starts in a completely
abstract way, but eventually my responses to each layer start to
tell a story, which then unfolds as it will.”
Jensen has been using raw canvas and soft pastel in her recent
paintings, keeping the same delicate, restrained touch that
allows for a roominess in her images. She's been exploring this
space even more with installations.
"I VIEW THE WORLD THROUGH
A KALEIDOSCOPE OF ENERGY
FLOWING IN LAYERS: SHIFTING
APART, CREATING SPACE THEN
RECONFIGURING IN A NEW PATTERN,
CREATING DIFFERENT SPACES."
Her layered work has always been evocative of another dimension,
so 3D seems like a natural progression. Movement and flow are
recurring themes. Often a painting series will inspire installations,
which are, she says, “giant, 3D paintings.” Curiosity guides the
best kind of life and art. Jensen says she is intrigued by what
happens when layers of images are “teased apart and pulled into
three dimensional configurations.” As the viewer walks through,
the perspective evolves, and awareness expands.
Jensen invites us to pause and reflect on how both motion and
stillness create our journey and experience in life. Journeys can
often take twists and circle back; the creative process does too.
“In art school I was more interested in sculpture than painting and
only really started painting seriously in my 60s. I see my affinity
for 3D in every painting.”
New work will be available at the Sunshine Coast Art Crawl
(October) and at upcoming installations at The Hearth Gallery
on Bowen Island (November 2024) and GPAG in Gibsons
(December 2024). ·
VIEW MORE OF JAN JENSEN'S WORK AT JANJENSENART.COM
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