Artist Statement & Bio
Jessica Dalrymple studied Fine Art at Hamilton College and trained as a painter at The Art Student’s League of New York and with landscape painters in rural locations. She now maintains a studio in Brooklyn, NY. She exhibits with many National juried shows and galleries, teaches painting & drawing, and leads an annual Meditative Plein Air Painting Retreat in the Catskills.
She finds inspiration from both urban and rural subject matter and is attracted to nature in the city and, conversely, the human element in nature, so she explores these overlaps. Whether it be a road winding through a farm or a city tree stretching toward the light she appreciates these human and natural designs and their intersections and juxtapositions.
Her recent work focuses on nature in the city, partly in reaction to the increase of trees, parks, gardens, farms, and plantings in New York City and New Jersey. She looks for contrasts and patterns created by natural elements growing in an urban environment such as soft leafy greens against solid geometric forms. She finds the overlap of organic with concrete compelling, and seeks to capture the life force that can coexist with and surge through the urban environment.
Her process begins by painting in the open air. Painting alla prima enables her to best express that combination of color, light, and gesture that align in a compelling way. She strives to bring that dynamic alignment and its life energy back to her studio to expand upon.
