featured art: bone series medusas and urchins

The Bone Series is focused on the remains of a form. The pieces imply what is left after the flesh is gone or pieces that need to be reassembled to understand what once was. These sculptures take their forms from the skeletal structures of radiolarians and the movements of jellyfish. They are made with very thin pieces of nearly translucent porcelain and some with high temperature wire that give movement and breathe life into the skeletal structures.

Fun Facts that inspire my work:

About Jellyfish: Jellyfish have been a part of the marine ecosystem for over 500 million years and they have no plan to depart. They love warm waters and can handle low oxygen environments, which means that rising ocean temperatures and higher acidification levels the ocean is becoming a place where jellyfish thrive. Overfishing of jellyfish predators like tuna and swordfish adds to their population and this makes some scientistic think that jellyfish just might take over the world… or at least the ocean. Anybody want to go for a swim?

About Radiolarians: Radiolarians are not well understood but are thought to hold clues to the evolution of life on Earth, as well as be an insight into changing climate conditions. They absorb carbon from the atmosphere when alive and trap it as they sink to the deep sea floor when they die. They have existed for at least 550 million years and are found in all the world’s oceans at all depths but many populations are declining due to warming temperatures.

You can shop for some of these pieces in person at Radius Gallery in Santa Cruz and some are available in my online shop

450 Pieces Exhibition

Experience the art of the Visual Arts Network in person! Not one but THREE galleries in Santa Cruz are teaming up to host a brand new exhibit showcasing 450 different artworks by the creators on the Visual Arts Network. With over 350 artists on the Network, each gallery is taking on a group of artists by last name.


R. Blitzer Gallery | Artists A-G

Hours: Wednesday & Thursday 1-4pm and by appointment

Curated by the Sea | Artists H-R

Hours: Thursday-Saturday from 12-4 and by appointment

Radius Gallery | Artists S-Z

Hours: Wednesday-Sunday 12-5pm and by appointment


Galleries are strictly adhering to all current County Health Department safety protocols.

Hearts for your Valentine!

Art Hearts | shop | Earth Art Studio

ART HEARTS!

There are just a handful of Art Hearts left in the online shop, so if you need a last minute gift for your sweetie this Valentine’s Day, better grab one quick!

FREE PICK UP AT THE STUDIO

SHIPPING AVAILABLE IN THE US ONLY

SHOP NOW!

art orphan…

When you work in a series, it’s always a little sad to have that one last piece that just hasn’t found it’s home yet. Such is the case with this last piece from the Lichen Series | Walnut Trees, it is an art orphan still looking for a happy home.

I created three of these pieces using slabs of California Black Walnut that came from a fallen tree in downtown Santa Cruz. I had custom steel bases fabricated to hold the slabs and made hundreds of small ceramic forms to attach to the wood. The ceramic forms were inspired by a type of shelf fungus often found on decaying wood. The ceramic pieces follow the curves and flow of the woodgrain on both sides of the planks giving movement to the otherwise rooted pieces. They are large and stately but only take up about one square foot of space, they are modern and rustic to fit with any style home and honestly; these are some of my favorite pieces I have made and I can’t believe this one hasn’t found a home yet.

Two of them are homed in Los Gatos and this one is still available for purchase. If you’re interested please contact me at jw@jenniward.com.

Artists Sharing Artists: Nikolina Kovalenko

I met Nikolina when I was an artist in residence in Stöðvarfjörður, Iceland. We spent a month there being simply wowed by the natural beauty of eastern Iceland. Nika created an amazing series of monochromatic paintings on aluminum panels in lighting speed all inspired by the landscape, waterfalls and bits of nature she found while hiking. She even attempted to learn a little Icelandic, while I was happy to be able to pronounce the name of our town correctly. You can see her works from Iceland here.

We stayed in touch over the years and I watched her paint her way through a South American backpacking trip with adorable alpacas and vast landscapes. She then launched into her current series of work, Utopian Reefs after becoming a certified scuba diver. She uses her art as a vehicle to educate and inspire others to protect the planet. I love following along with her travels, her art and her contagious optimism on life, so I had to share with you all.

Red Coral Reign | oil on canvas | 54″ x 80″ | 2020

Nika’s work stems from an interest in humanity’s psychological connection with Nature and strives to expose the consequences our everyday actions have on the environment. Her subjects range from global warming, deforestation and coral bleaching, to processing and interpreting visual landscape and cultural associations.

Learn more about her process and concepts for her latest series Utopian Reefs:

To add her work to your collection visit: www.nikolinakovalenko.com or follow her on IG at @nikolinakovalenko


Artists Sharing Artists: is a series of posts where I share some of my favorite artists who are also inspired by nature and use their art to protect what they love. More artists coming soon…

Back in the Saddle…

I am officially back in my studio full-time after a year mixed with travel, making art in the middle of nowhere, and dealing with insane fires, politics and pandemics. It’s been quite a ride, but it is good to be back feeling hopeful so I’m hitting the ground running!

I will admit that ‘the dirt’ has lagged along this year without very much intriguing content so thank you for sticking with me! Now that my hands are back in the clay on a daily basis and the kilns are firing up, I will have a lot more to share with you. I’m hoping to create more short videos of behind-the-scenes in the studio, step-by-steps and sharing where my inspiration comes from. I will also be featuring some artists that I’ve met in my travels over the past few years who inspire me and who are also inspired by nature to create their works. I hope that you enjoy meeting them in some upcoming posts!

All the details about new works, upcoming shows and opportunities to buy new art will be coming soon… ’cause I’m baaaack!

taking some time…

As much as I’d like to say that I’ve been using the last few weeks of this year to be really creative, honestly… I’ve had more days away from clay than with clay. Instead, I’ve been focused on getting our new property in Baja set up and functional for camping on which comes with all kinds of unexpected and fun challenges.

I’ve also been trying to enjoy the time with my husband as his sabbatical year comes to an end. This year was not what any of us expected it to be, but my personal positive take-away is discovering that spending all day, every day with my husband is fantastic. I’m so grateful we made the decision to take this year off- even if it was not what we planned.

So as we approach the holiday season, I hope you also get some time and try to find what might of been a piece of positivity that came out of this last year too. And then we can all just rejoice in January 2021. I’m excited to hit the studio hard next year and crank out lots of new works and hopefully some new exhibitions. See y’all then!

happy happy, merry merry