Jessi Hamilton (BFA ’12)

“Dealing with memory, childhood, adventure and layers, my work illustrates my personal rendition of my family’s history. Layers play a key role in my process because they come together to form a fictional representation of the past. Working from photographs taken by my father, ranging in time from the 1970s to the 1990s, I focus on broad shapes first, specifically choosing colors that I find to be representative of the time period. Some parts end up very detailed, and others are left unfinished, referencing the wrinkles and imperfections of remembering. Working on handmade paper that has its own obvious blemishes reinforces the idea of fragility and vulnerability within the theme of childhood and reminiscing. I feel that a great portion of these paintings are based on imagination, a tool that my family strongly encouraged, which enabled me to discover the whimsical properties of the mundane and the adventure to be found in a suburban neighborhood.  Overall, this series is strung together by my romanticized, real and imagined version of the past, rendered through the consciousness of my adult self.”

Jessica Lauren Hamilton

Portfolio site: throughwindows.blogspot.com