ABOUT

To me, art is a true, honest magic that can change the way one looks at the world, and it is an honor when someone else finds a new way to see the world through my work.

I had the blessing of growing up in Jakarta, Indonesia. From an early age I was immersed in the beautiful culture of a people to whom art was simply a way of life. Walking down the street one can see an old woman teaching a child how to bead a sarong or young man carving a wooden bas-relief. My mother, a watercolorist who at that time was affiliated with Kori gallery in Jakarta, seized this amazing opportunity to educate her daughters. We were taught how to weave banana leaves into packets for longton (rice steamed in banana leaves). We painted barong masks and sat with the masters of the wyang kulit shadow puppet shows as learned as they worked their magic. We performed Indonesian dance and learned how to play the traditional music of the Javanese Gamelan. One of my favorite childhood memories was the summer I spent learning how to wax and dye batiks at a little studio just outside of the Monkey Forest in Bali.

This exposure to such a variety of artistic media so early in life has led me to a very elastic way of approaching art.

I am crazy for texture and color, be it in language, or the kind that can be seen and touched. I have found no need to pick one single medium; the fun for me comes from constantly diving feet first into a new technique, playing with it, and reforming it to enhance whatever I am currently trying to coax out of my mind. For me there is a joy in it all, be it in photography, mosaics, decoupage, graphic design, embossing, wire work, sculpting, engraving….anything I can get my hands on. Manipulating physical images, words, and materials all gives an outlet to the sometimes off-bubble way I view the world…all of the beauty, humor, and yes – sarcasm, that gives me pause and make me think twice about things.

I amconstantly awed by the mystery of how creation occurs. Amazingly, our subconscious mind fits images and ideas together to form a kaleidoscope of unique perceptions. You look at an image and see one thing; I can look at the same image and have a completely different experience.

Everywhere I look I am inspired. I hope when you look, you’re inspired, too.

Jhenai