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Jessica Libor

~ Studio Journal

Jessica Libor

Tag Archives: young artists

Featured in a Philadelphia Art Blog

03 Monday Mar 2014

Posted by Jessica Libor in Artist Profiles, In My Studio, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts

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Tags

artist bios, artist interviews, artist studios, beautiful art, beautiful paintings of women, classical realism, don brewer, emerging artist, emerging artists, gilding, jessica libor, pennsylvania academy of the fine arts, philadelphia artists, studio tour, young artists

Recently, I was featured in DonArtNews, a Philadelphia art blog!  I met Don Brewer, the writer behind the blog, at my studio on a chilly day in January.  We had a great time chatting about the art scene in Philadelphia, and his questions and insights were right on.  Below is the article from Don’s blog.  To see the original, visit his blog at http://www.donartnews.com/jessica-libor/

Jessica Libor, Visual Artist, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts

On a sunny but frigid January day I finally overcame a long standing inhibition of mine – to visit the world renowned Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts on North Broad Street in Philadelphia. I can’t explain why I never visited Philly’s famous art school except with silly excuses. Fear is my top excuse, feeling unworthy or that I just didn’t belong are the primary elements. I know it’s stupid self-flagellation but as fate would have it, Jessica Libor, Master of Fine Arts II student at PAFA discovered DoNArTNeWs and invited me to visit her studio and tour the campus.

We met in the coffee shop and the two of us immediately clicked. For several hours we talked about art while walking through the museum and school. Jessica made sure I saw the student art show after we visited the ‘Beyond the Paint: Philadelphia’s Mural Arts‘ exhibition. We chatted about the murals and I told her stories and anecdotes about the mural artists I know. But the student art show really opened my eyes to what’s going on at the nation’s first museum and school of fine arts. I discovered it’s not all formal portraits, still life paintings and landscapes; the students are experimenting in abstraction, conceptual art, sculpture, art installations and even, wait for it, video and photography. My fears were erased and now I can’t wait to visit again. After our museum tour, Jessica escorted me to the art school and we visited her art studio on the eighth floor.

Jessica Libor‘s studio is on the south east corner of the building with views of the Convention Center and Philadelphia City Hall. The sun streamed in the windows and illuminated her studio with warm light, the walls filled with works in progress and finished paintings, a vase of flowers echoed the romanticism of her artwork. Libor is a fan of Jean-Honoré Fragonard, a French painter and print-maker from the late 1700′s whose work is known for it’s remarkable brushwork and depiction of hedonistic pleasure. One of his most famous paintings is L’Escarpolette (The Swing), an engaging and delightful painting of a beautiful girl swaying high in a swing dangling from a tree, suiters and voyeurs vying for her affections or an up-skirt peek is one of her inspirations.

Jessica Libor‘s paintings are romantic, too, but with a contemporary sensibility reflecting the difficulty of youthful modern love. The characters in her paintings are beautiful yet seem to be separated by an elusive distance, often gazing contemplatively away from each other. The silver leaf applied to the canvas then tinted with oils creates a glow through the sky holes in the trees accentuating the mottled light on the summery lawn. Her oil medium is primarily turps with linseed but she also will layer with Liquin when the oils start to glaze. The resulting artwork is lush with painterly layers of color, romantic stories and lyrical compositions looking to the past for inspiration yet forward thinking with intellectual concepts.

Jessica Libor, Visual Artist

Jessica Libor, Visual Artist, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Attainment, 4′ x 6′, painting in progress, oil and genuine silver leaf on canvas, 2014, detail.

Anticipating my questions, the artist took the time to write to me and explain her point of view. In her final months as a Master of Fine Arts student, her language and grasp of communicating artistic ideals is eloquent and concise. If you’ve ever talked with a PAFA artist they have a way of explaining their work in words and concepts that are pointed and lucid. Jessica explained to me that periodically the students display their work in a large conference room and then must defend their art to their peers and critics with as many as 125 people in the room. The experience of overcoming this daunting challenge prepares the artist to communicate their concepts and techniques.

Jessica Libor, Visual Artist

Jessica Libor, Visual Artist, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Attainment, 4′ x 6′, painting in progress, oil and genuine silver leaf on canvas, 2014, detail

What medium(s) do you work in?

“I work primarily as an oil painter, but also gild precious metals like 23karat gold and genuine silver into the details or background of my paintings.I also create videos and installations. These have been more recent ventures, but have been really enjoyable extensions of my work, with different possibilities than painting.”

What is the subject of your artwork?

“Experiences of beauty. Everyone has them. Say you’re at a ballet, and it’s that moment when the music, the movements of the dancers, and the aesthetics all combine to take your breath away, and you forget everything else. It can happen when you’re listening to your favorite song, reach the top of a mountain, have a spiritual encounter, or fall in love. It’s different for everyone, but it’s that psychological experience that I’m trying to make visual.”

Jessica Libor, Visual Artist

Jessica Libor, Visual Artist, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Attainment, 4′ x 6′, painting in progress, oil and genuine silver leaf on canvas, 2014

What issues does your latest body of work deal with?

This particular body of work, from 2013-2014 (during my second year of graduate school), deals with ideas of romance and the tensions between men and women, from a female perspective. A lot of the work has been in a dreamy garden retreat that seems like a stage perfectly set, but something perhaps is a little bit off in paradise. It’s because we’re human, we’re flawed. Perhaps I’m dealing with the idea that even in the most ideal of circumstances, it’s within human nature to make things imperfect in some way.”

What are some things that inspire or influence you?

“Classical music, contemporary music, ballet, theatre, films, everyday life experiences, literature, poetry, and other artists. Historical artistic influences include John Millais, Jean-Honoré Fragonard, Edgar Degas and John William Waterhouse, and current artists that I admire are Julie Heffernan, Pippolita Rist, Brad Kunkle, and Jocelyn Hobbie. Literature, stories, myths, legends and lore play a big part in my narrative work. Ballet and the stage have a big impact on the way that I think about my work, as well.”

Jessica Libor, Visual Artist

Jessica Libor, Visual Artist, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Suspended, 2014, oil and genuine silver leaf on canvas, 20″ x 16″

How do you begin a piece?

“An idea. They come in a flash—like in the cartoons when a light bulb goes off over your head! Then a sketch…my sketchbook is full of ideas I just haven’t gotten to yet. What are some of the reasons that you get excited about painting? Painting has no limitations in its ability to create illusion. You can create whole alternate worlds, hopefully believable enough that the viewer will be absorbed into it.”

Jessica Libor, Visual Artist

Jessica Libor, Visual Artist, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts

What do you hope the viewer will feel or think when they see your work?

“I hope that it takes them to a place of helpless belief in the experience of beauty represented—if only for a moment. I also would like it if they felt a longing to be part of the picture—step into it. And I hope they go away challenged and uplifted. Because life does give us these moments of beauty, though they’re fleeting and imperfect. The intensity of the detail in my work, and also the use of precious metals, are actually very conscious conceptual decisions that reflect the permanent, high-value nature of a memory once it has been made.”

Where would you categorize your art to fit into the “art world?”

“I’m not too worried about that now. But I hope to be able to align my self with galleries and organizations that can embrace and really get behind my vision and multi-disciplinary approach. If I could present my work in an environment that allows it to breathe, and is accessible to people to experience, that would make me happy. I’ve seen a few exhibitions like that in Chelsea, NY, and I really like the way that when presented right, different mediums can actually complement each other.”

Jessica Libor, Visual Artist

Jessica Libor, Visual Artist, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts

Describe some interesting technical details abut the making of your work.

“In my paintings, getting models, finding a location and costuming are all important parts of creating the painting. I try to have the models recreate the idea in my mind. Sometimes they’ll surprise me with something even better than my original idea. When it comes to paint application and gilding, it’s all about layering glazes.”

Jessica Libor, Visual Artist

Jessica Libor, Visual Artist, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts

Relate a transformative experience which tells us something about your work or why you became an artist.

“When I was a small child, I would play under the huge oak trees in the backyard with my sister and the neighbor kids. We would make little villages at the base of the trees made out of tiny twigs, mud, and moss. We called them fairy huts. It was like if we created them well enough and made the environment perfect for them, the fairies would come. This same sense of magic creation of an immersive environment is very important in my work today. And maybe, if I do it right, it’ll be real in my viewer’s minds…if only for a moment.” – Jessica Libor

Jessica Libor‘s art blog details her exploration into installation art as well as her paintings. ”Tender Missive was an interactive installation that involved over 450 diverse love letters from men throughout the century such as Edgar Allen Poe, John Keats, Richard Steele, Lord Nelson, Byron, Pierre Curie, Alexander Pope, King Solomon, Mozart, Ludwig Beethoven, King Henry the VIII, Benito Mussilini and even Adolph Hitler.” I encourage you to take time to explore the blog and learn more about her artistic pursuits.

I told Jessica I was a little concerned that her career plans were hopeful but not concrete. She explained that in addition to her graduate school studies and duties she works twenty-five hours a week as a makeup artist for Dior cosmetics and that she loves making women beautiful almost as much as making art. Jessica Libor assured me she will invite me to her final exhibition at PAFA, I am truly looking forward to viewing her art collection.

Summer Update

25 Sunday Aug 2013

Posted by Jessica Libor in Exhibitions, In My Studio, Inspiration, Journeys, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts

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Tags

Arcadia Contemporary, Arcadia Fine Arts, art student, artist studios, Brad Kunkle, Brooklyn artist, castle, emerging artist, Erik Koeppel, female artists, gilding, Grand Central Academy Art, jessica libor, John Everett Millias, Lauren Fair Photography, Lauren Sansaricq, Malcolm Liepke, Master of Fine Arts, maxfield parrish, New York City, newport, newport art, NYC, oil painter, Ophelia, pafa, PAFA MFA, pennsylvania academy of the fine arts, philadelphia emerging artists, pre-raphaelite, Rhode Island, Rossetti, steven assael, William Holman Hunt, william trost richards, young artists

Jessica Libor

Spring

This summer was an exciting one, full of lots of learning and traveling. Since my first year of my Master’s in Fine Art finished in May, I’ve been working in my studio at home a lot, sketching out ideas in my sketchpad, and planning out pieces.

Jessica Libor

Inside Steven Assael’s studio

One of the highlights was visiting Steven Assael’s studio. I originally visited to purchase a piece—a small, elegant sketch of a reclining woman, looking behind her. My friend Holly and I visited. It was a treat to see the inside of his Manhattan studio—a studio draped in heavy cloths and curtains like a theatre, with racks of antique costumes, masks and props hung over mannequins. Dozens and dozens of highly finished drawings, more beautiful than real life, filled up the walls. Mr. Assael ended up doing a quick sketch of me as I was there, as well. I was amazed at how quickly he could capture a likeness.  He was kind enough to give us advice as aspiring artists, as well.

Jessica Libor

Inside Steven Assael’s Studio, with work in process bride painting in the corner

Jessica Libor

Sketch of Jessica Libor, by Steven Assael, 2013

Being in New York City for a bit was inspiring. The hum and energy of the city always fills me with new energy, and I return home with a higher standard to hold myself to.

Jessica libor

Enjoying NYC

One of the trips there included a show at Arcadia in Soho—Malcolm T. Liepke’s solo exhibition. What I like about Liepke’s work is the consistency. Also, the way he uses color in the clothing, eyes, and hands of the figures is extremely pleasing to the eye. Loving fashion, I enjoy his interplay of high fashion and art. As always at Arcadia, the show was well attended, the gallery staff friendly and knowledgeable, and the show had substance and talent that was worth the trip.

Liepke

Liepke

Liepke

Liepke

Jessica Libor at Malcom Liepke show

Jessica Libor at Malcom Liepke show

An exciting day trip this spring was a trip to Washington, DC to the National Gallery of Art to see the show “Pre-Raphaelites: Victorian Art and Design, 1848—1900”.  I arrived there just in time for to see the cherry blossoms in bloom!

Cherry Blossoms...heavenly!

Cherry Blossoms…heavenly!

I’ve always loved the Pre-Raphaelites, but after studying in depth their history and personal lives this past year, I was ready to see their pieces in the flesh. The show did not disappoint! The exhibition had all the major works by Pre-Raphaelite painters such as Millias and Rossetti.

Jessica Libor

Ophelia, by John Everett Millais

It was incredible to be able to stand inches away from Ophelia and be able to study the brushstroke’s Millias’ hand made. It was moving how sincere the artists in the exhibition were—they were fully committed to the image and to the story each piece told. Even though the Pre-Raphaelites were out of fashion for a time, it’s my belief that sincerity and passion stand the test of time, and are beginning to be recognized again for their value.

Rossetti

Rossetti

Hunt

Hunt

The National Gallery describes the exhibit: “The young members of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, formed in 1848, shook the art world of mid-19th-century Britain by rejecting traditional approaches to painting. Combining scientific precision, an innovative approach to subject matter, and brilliant, clear colors, Pre-Raphaelitism was Britain’s first avant-garde art movement.”
This summer also involved several photo shoots—I’m lucky enough to have some lovely friends and family who were willing to pose for me. We did several photo shoots on beautiful summer days that involved some serious tree climbing, dress-up, and swimming. Thanks so much to my up-for-anything models Lauren, Tim, Courtney, Kelley, Adam and Todd!

Letting loose on a photo shoot...

Letting loose on a photo shoot…

With my two beautiful models, Kelley and Lauren!

With my two beautiful models, Kelley and Lauren!

Modeling for an artist sometimes means climbing trees...

Modeling for an artist sometimes means climbing trees…

Another highlight was being able to study with the gilder and painter Brad Kunkle for the day in Brooklyn. I’ve admired Brad’s work ever since I saw it at Arcadia, and it was wonderful to be able to learn from a master gilder and painter such as him.

Brooklyn, NY

Brooklyn, NY

Jessica Libor and Brad Kunkle

Jessica Libor and Brad Kunkle

His unapologetically beautiful images of figures infused with mythological, but obscure, situations resonate with something of my own vision. After studying with him, gilding with gold and silver leaf back in my own studio goes much more quickly and easily, after learning the correct process of applying it in conjunction with oil paint.

Eidolon, gold and silver leaf, Brad Kunkle

Eidolon, gold and silver leaf, Brad Kunkle

My favorite--30,000 Feet, Brad Kunkle

My favorite–30,000 Feet, Brad Kunkle

Her Own Field, by Brad Kunkle

Her Own Field, by Brad Kunkle

During the late summer, I made the day long drive up to New Hampshire to study with landscape painters associated with the Grand Central Academy, Lauren Sansaricq and Erik Koeppel. It was here in the White Mountains of New Hampshire that dozens of artists from all over the world gathered to learn from Lauren and Erik. I had never taken a landscape instruction course in my life, and thought it was time. During the course of the week, our group painted in a different location outside each day, many of the locations the same ones that the Hudson River Valley artists painted in. It was a welcome change to be able to spend the whole day out of doors, in the crystal clear air.

New Hampshire streams

New Hampshire streams

New Hampshire woods

New Hampshire woods

White Mountains of New Hampshire

White Mountains of New Hampshire

After the course, I felt like I wanted to re-paint any landscape I’ve ever done, now that I knew the tricks and principles of Hudson River Valley painters as practiced by Lauren and Erik. I was lucky enough to see Lauren and Erik’s studio as well, and see their latest works in progress from their recent trip to Yellowstone National Park. I love the way their atmospheres look so airy and detailed.  Many thanks to them for opening up their home and studio to those eager to learn.

Get together after class--inside Lauren and Erik's studio

Get together after class–inside Lauren and Erik’s studio

Inside Erik and Lauren's studio

Inside Erik and Lauren’s studio

Painting in one of the overlooks in the mountains--Lauren is far left

Painting in one of the overlooks in the mountains–Lauren third from left

In the middle of painting on location...perched on some rocks in the middle of a stream!

In the middle of painting on location…perched on some rocks in the middle of a stream!

Below, some of the plein air paintings I was able to complete while in New Hampshire.  Please contact me at jlibor@jessicalibor.com if you’re interested in purchasing.

Jackson Falls, oil on panel, 10"x12", Jessica Libor 2013

Jackson Falls, oil on panel, 10″x12″, Jessica Libor 2013

Summer, oil on board, 8"x10", Jessica Libor 2013

Summer, oil on board, 8″x10″, Jessica Libor 2013

Blue Mountain, oil on board, 10"x10", Jessica Libor 2013

Blue Mountain, oil on board, 10″x10″, Jessica Libor 2013

Jackson Falls, study, oil on panel, 4"x6", Jessica Libor 2013

Jackson Falls, study, oil on panel, 4″x6″, Jessica Libor 2013

In August I was included in a group show at SOHO20 Gallery in Chelsea, NY.  I exhibited my piece, Anna of the Woods. 

Anna of the Woods, oil on linen board, 10"x12", Jessica Libor 2012

Anna of the Woods, oil on linen board, 10″x12″, Jessica Libor 2012

Another great trip was a visit to Newport, Rhode Island. This was such a fun trip, being a family vacation, so it was good to share explorations with my mom, dad, sister and her husband, and their crazy dog, Ollie. In between visiting the beach and exploring the town, we were able to hit up several museums and art galleries. Worth mentioning was the William Vareika Fine Art Gallery, right along Newport’s main street. They specialize in 18th and 19th century art, and have a huge collection of William Trost Richard’s paintings and drawings. Definitely worth a visit if you’re in that part of town.

William Trost Richards treasure room

William Trost Richards treasure room

Another fabulous museum is the National Museum of American Illustration, housed in a historical mansion close to downtown Newport. Here they house a large number of Maxfield Parrish’s illustrations and paintings, which look like glowing jewels inside the mansion. I’ve always admired Parrish’s work, so it was incredible to be able to study up close his paintings. Endless layers of glazes created his signature glowing effect. One thing that I really noticed about his work was the good design. The way he used trees, figures and architecture to balance and create tension in his work. For all his planning, his work has a sense of a dream world or alternate reality, in the best sense.

Daybreak, by Maxfield Parrish

Daybreak, by Maxfield Parrish

Maxfield Parrish

Maxfield Parrish

Maxfield Parrish, Dream Garden

Maxfield Parrish, Dream Garden

Maxfield Parrish, Moonlight

Maxfield Parrish, Moonlight

As far as my own work, I have planned out many of my paintings and transferred drawings to the boards that I work on. I have a clearer sense than before about the direction and feeling of my work. I’ve completed two paintings this summer, below.

The Reading, oil and gold leaf on panel, Jessica Libor 2013

The Reading, oil and gold leaf on panel, Jessica Libor 2013

April, oil and silver leaf on panel, 10"x12", Jessica Libor 2013

April, oil and silver leaf on panel, 10″x12″, Jessica Libor 2013

There are several more in my studio in different stages of gilding and painting.  I’ll be teaching a Master Painting class at a local art center this fall, and am excited for my first opportunity to completely create a course curriculum. I have updated my website and blog. I’m ready to start school again—my last year in school as an MFA 2 student at Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Excited to dive into this year and immerse myself in that atmosphere of creativity once again.
I’ve also started a new project I am super excited about…I’ll be featuring different artists here on this blog, with in-depth interviews and photos that illuminate their process and thoughts that go into their work.  If you have suggestions for interesting contemporary artists, or are an artist interested in being featured, don’t hesitate to email me at jlibor@jessicalibor.com!   This project will be ongoing, fueled by a desire to help fellow artists from all career levels.
Thanks for reading, and stay tuned for more posts on my journey as an artist!  Until next time, enjoy the last few days of Indian Summer 🙂

Exploring Newport

Exploring Newport

 

Image

“The Reading”…completed version

07 Wednesday Aug 2013

Tags

beautiful painting, classical realism, contemporary female artists, couple, emerging artist, emerging female artists, fine artists, fragonard, jessica libor, model, oil painters, PAFA graduates, painting with oils, pennsylvania academy of the fine arts, pre-raphaelite, realist art, renoir, romantic painters, romantic paintings, romanticism, young artists

The Reading, oil and gold leaf on board, 16″x20″, Jessica Libor 2013

There’s nothing like the home stretch when you’re working on a painting.  I’ve poured many hours into this work and have pushed it further than I usually do–which I think I’m going to make into a regular thing 🙂  Above you can see the piece as it looks today (please imagine it without the watermark!) after I put in the final brushstrokes.   It’s all in oil, but there are accents of pure 23 karat gold leaf woven throughout.  The pattern along the edge of the silk cloth is all gold leaf, as well as the apples and oranges scattered through the grass.  I’m happy with it as a finished piece, for now.  I’m planning on this being another one to exhibit for my Master’s thesis exhibit in May.  When I am putting this many hours of planning and execution into each piece, planning ahead is a necessity.

Many thanks to Todd Barrett, who lent his superior modeling skills to me for this painting and for a few other upcoming pieces.  Todd is also a Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts student who is a great artist in his own right, tackling tough subjects in his art such as city crime.  Many thanks to this friend.

Todd Barrett

Thanks Todd!

The other model was pretty good too, since she knew exactly what she wanted out of the painting– seeing as it’s myself.

This piece was influenced by Renoir’s paintings of couples relaxing in the verdant grass in springtime, as well as the hyperrealistic Pre-Raphaelite paintings of people who although are staged in pastoral settings, have unseen tensions between or around them.

Renoir, woman with a parasol

Renoir, woman with a parasol

Posted by Jessica Libor | Filed under In My Studio, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts

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Working with Silver Leaf, the Figure, and Oils: Daughter of Eve

30 Monday Jan 2012

Posted by Jessica Libor in How To, In My Studio, New York Academy

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Tags

beautiful paintings, emerging artists, how to apply gold leaf, how to paint like the masters, how to paint people, how to paint the figure, how to paint well, how to use silver leaf in art, jessica libor, philadelphia artists, young artists

As I work at my easel this month, I’m trying some new techniques with silver and gold leaf before painting over top with oils.  This piece is called ‘Daughter of Eve’ and is a self portrait I’m working on.  There’s a subtle message underlying it, about how we all have so much in common as women, from the beginning of time until now, across all cultures.

Step 1, Daughter of Eve, Jessica Libor 2012

I started out the painting by sketching it out on the canvas mounted on board.  Next, I went over the entire canvas with a sepia tone (mixed with turpenoid)  to get rid of the white.  After that layer dried, I applied silver leaf over specific places in the painting that  I wanted to shine, such as the sky between the branches, and the necklace on the figure.

Next I began painting the figure and sky, going over the colors in blocks and laying in the correct tones.

Step 2, Daughter of Eve (unfinished), oil on canvas with silver leaf, Jessica Libor 2012

From there, I really concentrated on the skin tones, thinking of the classical way of painting flesh, and painting what I saw, not what  I thought looked right.  A lot of times our eyes deceive us, and we have to trust our minds instead.

I’ve been working on this piece and a few others nonstop for the past week, trying to wrap up a portfolio for a scholarship from New York Academy of Art.  There have been some late nights (or rather, mornings!) painting in the studio this week!  Next post, I’ll share another painting I’ve been working on.  Until then!

Step 3, "Daughter of Eve" unfinished, oil and silver leaf on canvas board, Jessica Libor 2012

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