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I presented a talk at the downtown Napa Main Library on July 12, 2019 about how and why I make my animal portraits. In my talk, I reveal a pivotal moment from my childhood, something unique about how I think and how that shapes my art, and I describe my process in depth. Please enjoy this recording from the opening reception, as well as a write up from the Napa Country Register.
Art in the Library featuring Jamie L. Luoto runs throughout the month of July 2019. Click here for more details.
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 ©Jamie L. Luoto, "I Believe in Ghosts," oil on canvas, 60x40 inches, December 2018 If you visited my studio in Autumn 2018, you may recall my larger-than-life-sized self portrait, I Believe in Ghosts. It's a recent addition to my new body of work, Portraits of Self and Society, in which I juxtapose vulnerability with challenging social constructs. This self-portrait examines how the conflicted messages women receive about ourselves, our bodies, and our roles impacts our lives and shapes our experiences, expectations, and choices. I'm eager to share that I recently received word from the National Portrait Gallery in London that I Believe in Ghosts, was selected for the final round of the 2019 BP Portrait Award! Those who know say this is the most prestigious portrait painting competition in the world, representing the very best in contemporary portrait painting. Roughly 200 portraits are selected from thousands of submissions from all around the world for the final round of judging. These 200 portraits are then whittled down to about 50 portraits that will go on to exhibit at the National Portrait Gallery in June. Elation from the good news delivered via email in the middle of the night morphed into adrenaline as I realized I had a little over two weeks to coordinate having a frame made, having a shipping crate made compliant with UK customs regulations, correctly filling out paperwork that will make or break my journey through UK customs, and actually shipping my portrait from Healdsburg to London, clearing customs and arriving at the venue before March 1. Easy peasy, right? Frankly a lot of hard work and support by many local treasures went into readying I Believe in Ghosts for departure to London. My piece is currently in transit with FedEx Air Freight and I’ll be holding my breath until it lands in the UK and clears customs! Regardless of the final decision, It's a huge honor to have my work considered for the second year in a row, and very I'm grateful to be included. To be continued...
 The crate is taller than I am! Thank you to Glenn and Charly at Hammerfriar for an absolutely perfect frame made under absurd conditions! Thank you to Chris at John Annesley for a beautifully constructed, lightweight shipping crate. Thank you Skylark Images for the exceptional documentation of my work. Thank you Sally for your endless enthusiasm and support, and help wrapping “IBIG.” and lastly, thank you Byron for around the clock all inclusive love and support. Post Edit:I Believe in Ghosts didn't continue on to exhibit in the 2019 BP Portrait Award show. However, I am really very happy to have had my work selected and considered two consecutive years for the final round of judging by the National Portrait Gallery in London ... not too shabby! Well done to all and a big congratulations to this years exhibitors.
Rattlesnake and Turkey Vulture are exhibiting as part of Animalia at the Healdsburg Center for the Arts. Join me at the opening reception Saturday, March 2, 5:00-7:00pm. The exhibition continues through April 14.
A portion of the proceeds from all of the art sales in Animalia will be donated to the buyers choice of the Humane Society of Sonoma County and/or Safari West Foundation. Healdsburg Center for the Arts 130 Plaza St., Healdsburg, CA 95448 Open | Sun, Mon, & Thur 11am-5pm Fri & Sat 11am-6pm | Closed Tue, Wed Friend and fellow artist, Michelle Hoting and I kicked off the holiday season with a festive holiday celebration and art show at my studio in Dry Creek Valley, Healdsburg, California. Join me for the next one by signing up for my monthly newsletter which features new art, good news, and public and private events.  Jamie L. Luoto & Michelle Hoting  Holiday spread beneath ©Jamie L. Luoto, "Reduction (Self Portrait)," oil on canvas, 48x36 inches, 2017  Michelle Hoting's gorgeous jewelry-scape.  Festive sips surrounded by painted works by Jamie L. Luoto  Jamie L. Luoto in front of her anthropomorphic portraits, spreading holiday cheer!  Sonoma County Art Trails open studio tour continues this weekend, October 20-21 2018 from 10am to 5pm. For those who came last weekend, thank you for a wonderful time -- it looks like this weekend will be just as fun! We're looking at gorgeous weather, stimulating art, and scintillating conversation. Here's what else you can expect:
Learn about my creative process while meeting my 40 animal portraits. Enjoy pleasant refreshments while perusing my growing collection of thought-provoking portraits of self and society. If you feel inspired, create your own animal portrait at my coloring station, and definitely sign up for a chance to win one of my giclee prints in a drawing. As a reminder, after this weekend I will return to hosting studio visits year-round by appointment. I hope you'll come by and enjoy!  "Freddie" as part of Art Elevated in New York City. Photo Credit: Alexander Ayer Freddie is part of a high altitude gallery composed of 90 artist's works from around the globe that have been replicated on seven foot banners and hung on lampposts throughout the world-famous Garment District in the heart of Midtown Manhattan, creating a fantastic aerial art gallery that will remain on view from September 12 to October 30, 2018.
*Freddie is located on West 39th Street between 5th and 6th Avenue.
 ©Jamie L. Luoto, "America: She Was Asking For It," gouache on paper, 15x19 inches, 2016 Artist's StatementCreated in response to the 2016 presidential election, America: She Was Asking For It, was born from a nightmare and depicts a revealing portrait of not only America’s elected Head of State but also his wife and Vice President and Mrs. Pence.
A variety of symbols evoke both an immediate visceral reaction, such as the confederate flag, as well as an ongoing discovery of depravity represented as small painted details, such as the pins, that reveal contractions and hypocrisy. I utilized the bright coloring effects of gouache to capture the flashy tone of media imagery and intentionally made the work small to emphasize the insufficient attention and transitory coverage given to these issues by the media. The piece is floated atop an abyss-like, black velvet, to create an effect like that of a digital screen, and finally encased in a tarnished frame, as if it is a dangerous artifact, warning of possible future outcomes.  ©Jamie L. Luoto, "Sober Jockey," oil on canvas, 20x20 inches, September 2016 Male dominance in western art, and in particular portraiture, has been a critical element in denying women ownership over our own identity. It also has caused some of the most significant crimes and injustices against women to be ignored, dismissed, or worse glossed over as something entirely different. Sober Jockey confronts this head-on by singling out and reinterpreting Henri Fuseli's, The Nightmare from a female perspective. In doing so it directly confronts issues of violence towards women and the shock, trauma, stress, depression and haunting that so often comes with it. A scene which for so long has been presented and interpreted as a “Nightmare” is now shown to be a reality for the protagonist, as it is of course for so many millions of women.
Sober Jockey will be exhibiting, as part of Art in an Age of Anxiety, at the Arts Guild of Sonoma in Sonoma, California between August 30th through October 1st, 2018. Opening reception Saturday, September 1st, 2018. See Details Here. Art in an Age of Anxiety August 30 - October 1, 2018 *Opening reception Saturday, September 1st 5:00pm-7:30pm Arts Guild of Sonoma 40 E Napa Street Sonoma, CA 95476 707-996-3115 Open Sun, Mon, Wed, Thurs 11am-5pm Open Fri & Sat 10am-6pm Closed Tuesdays I'm honored to be included in Persistence, an exhibition at the Museum of Northern California Art celebrating and recognizing women artists. "Persistence" has become a byword for women standing up and I'm passionate about promoting the work of female artists past, present, and future. This was my kind of exhibition.  Jamie L. Luoto with her works "Sami Reindeer" and "Sami American"
 Opening Reception for "Persistence" at the Museum of Northern California Art Identity Spectrum |
 ©Jamie L. Luoto, "Sami Reindeer," gouache on paper, 14x11 inches, 2012 |  ©Jamie L. Luoto, "Sami American," oil and metal leaf on canvas, 18x14 inches, 2012 |
Two of my paintings, Sami American and Sami Reindeer, will be shown in Chico, California at the Museum of Northern California Art, as part of an all women exhibition, highlighting works relating to Persistence.
My work explores the complexities of ancestral identity and how it threads together the past, present and future. How can I relate to something that was never mine because it was never passed down in the way of traditions? My portraits contemplate the loss of Sami culture through oppression and my family’s emigration from Finland, as well as, the significance in reconnecting to the land and customs of my ancestors. My pieces are endeavors in understanding what it means to be Sami American.
Persistence
May 31 -July 15
Museum of Northern California Art
900 Esplanade
Chico, California
Museum Hours:
Thurs-Sunday: 11:00am - 5:00pm
My work explores the complexities of ancestral identity and how it threads together the past, present and future. How can I relate to something that was never mine because it was never passed down in the way of traditions? My portraits contemplate the loss of Sami culture through oppression and my family’s emigration from Finland, as well as, the significance in reconnecting to the land and customs of my ancestors. My pieces are endeavors in understanding what it means to be Sami American.
Persistence
May 31 -July 15
Museum of Northern California Art
900 Esplanade
Chico, California
Museum Hours:
Thurs-Sunday: 11:00am - 5:00pm
To Be Heard
at the
Old Courthouse Art Center
©Jamie L. Luoto, "America: She Was Asking For It," gouache on paper, 15x19 inches, 2016
I painted, America: She Was Asking For It immediately following the 2016 U.S. presidential election. A limited edition (edition of 10) print of this work was exhibited and sold at the first Nasty Women exhibition in NYC, 2017. 100% of the proceeds went to Planned Parenthood.
America: She Was Asking For It will be shown in Woodstock, Illinois at the Old Courthouse Arts Center, as part of what the organizers describe as "[an] exhibition [that] focuses on controversial artwork and the power artists have to highlight issues and social causes. This exhibition is an exercise in freedom of speech. The artwork in this exhibition takes a strong moral stance that either depicts intensely personal experiences or reflects and comments on society at large. Some of the work in this exhibition has been censored, or, by nature of the subject matter would be considered illegal in some countries. Art has the power to evoke strong opinions and challenge the viewer to think about a social issues in a new way. We hope you'll join us to engage in different perspectives on hot-topic social issues opening night!"
To Be Heard
June 2 - 30
Old Courthouse Arts Center
101 N. Johnson Street
Woodstock, Illinois
Gallery Hours:
Thursday: 11:00am - 5:00pm
Friday–Saturday: 11:00am - 7:00pm
Sunday: 11:00am - 5:00pm
Monday–Wednesday: gallery is closed
America: She Was Asking For It will be shown in Woodstock, Illinois at the Old Courthouse Arts Center, as part of what the organizers describe as "[an] exhibition [that] focuses on controversial artwork and the power artists have to highlight issues and social causes. This exhibition is an exercise in freedom of speech. The artwork in this exhibition takes a strong moral stance that either depicts intensely personal experiences or reflects and comments on society at large. Some of the work in this exhibition has been censored, or, by nature of the subject matter would be considered illegal in some countries. Art has the power to evoke strong opinions and challenge the viewer to think about a social issues in a new way. We hope you'll join us to engage in different perspectives on hot-topic social issues opening night!"
To Be Heard
June 2 - 30
Old Courthouse Arts Center
101 N. Johnson Street
Woodstock, Illinois
Gallery Hours:
Thursday: 11:00am - 5:00pm
Friday–Saturday: 11:00am - 7:00pm
Sunday: 11:00am - 5:00pm
Monday–Wednesday: gallery is closed
I created this space to showcase my past work, chronicle my current projects, and share my inspiration.
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