jennyarntzen.art

  Soy wax, ink wash, graphite, pen and ink, pencil crayon, oil pastel on paper 7 1/2" x 11" - in progress This morning Mom was struggling for the strength to sit up to be able to get from the bed to the commode. Adele was up and circling the room, doing what she could to help but, in fact, getting under foot. We got through the toilet operation and Mom back on the bed for her rice crispies. Once Mom was settled, Adele curled up in Mom's big chair to wait for the next event in our action-packed morning. I was up with Mom at 1130 pm last night to give her pepto bismal for heartburn, and again at 4 am to toilet and give her a bottle of Ensure. Mom is going through a difficult time right now as we sort out what foods she can eat, what level of strength she has available, how laboured is her breathing, and how much pain she is coping with from her arthritic knees.  Just now Adele gave an alert bark for me that Mom was on the move, just as I heard the light tapping of her cane ...

  Soy wax, ink wash, graphite, pencil crayons, oil pastel, ink pen, shellac - 8 1/2 x 11 on paper It must be over 20 years, likely in 2003, that I was interested in the qualities of using shellac for painting. I used it for my graduating project at Emily Carr, and I also experimented with coating paper for smaller works. I recently came across these coated sheets of paper and decided to see what happens when I use batik methods to melt wax and draw on the surface to create zones of resistance in the drawing. It turned out the shellac surface is almost 100% waterproof on the paper, so when I flooded the sheet with ink wash after applying the wax, the ink wash beaded up and barely absorbed into the paper. I used graphite and pencil crayons to build up the shape, depth and tone of the subject. Then I used white oil pastel, and then white pen, to build up the lightness, and then using a 6B graphite to add back darkness. Only after I stepped away and put the drawing up on the wall did I...

  Soy wax, graphite, pencil crayon, ink wash 12" x 9" on paper It is a tedious, demanding, confined time for me these past three years. On the one hand, I am responsible for the health and well-being of my frail elder parent. I spend the majority of my time caring for her, thinking about her care, and processing the experience of 'letting nature take its course'.  I cope with these creative constraints by drawing, painting, writing, and playing music. All my activities are taking place in my neighbourhood, with my 'neighbourhood folk'.  This cat is a regular neighbour. I find him in different spots, completely at ease wherever he is. He is a good teacher.

  Graphite, wax crayon, pencil crayon, pen, oil pastel on paper - 8 1/2" x 11"

  Tipping point The last straw We won’t know until it lands It appears as featherlight But it’s weight is enough To upset the cart To break the avalanche free To swamp the boat For the engine to cough its last gasps We aren’t going to know Until it happens In the blink of an eye Everything changes We aren’t going to know   We can try all we might To control what fate brings But we can’t pull the tomato to make it grow faster We can’t push the river to change its course Whatever we think should be Whatever we believe is right Whatever we have faith in We live on a blue speck in infinite space We are smaller than atomic particles We can disappear in an instant We know we are at the tipping point We don’t know what is tipping We don’t know what the point is We don’t know how long we have We do know we are on a tipping point Life is a balancing act Between the living and the dead Between the forces of inertia and the forces of nature Between the forces of life and the forces of th...

  As the Crow Flies - Graphite, pencil crayon, wax crayon, ink wash, pen on paper 11 1/2" x 15" The artwork is done for our poster and postcards for Neighbourhood Folk - Dec 1 2024. We have rented the Sunrise Community Hall to provide a place to gather and share stories and songs on a Sunday afternoon from 2 pm to 6 pm. There is no fee for admission. There is requirement for 'talent' to be part of the event. Neighbourhood Folk is an initiative to counter-act the isolating, lonely, depressing outcomes of late capitalism, toxic patriarchy, industrialization, consumerism, and the commodification of our artistic and creative birthright. We are humanity. We are evolved to collect, connect, and pull together for our common good. We are sensitive to each other. We bond through adversity and adventure. We are more than the sum of our parts. We are creative. We solve problems. Our best ideas emerge when we talk them through with each other. Throughout our evolution, we have ma...