Jennifer Kuhns
Artist Email: jennifer@jkmosaic.com
Artist Website: http://jkmosaic.com
Medium: Mosaic, carved concrete, papercutting, drawing, painting, printmaking; community mosaic projects
Artist Statement
I specialize in stained glass mosaic, with emphasis on use of reclaimed materials. While attending college, I focused on culture and mythology. These themes continue to inform my art, along with a celebration of nature and human experience. My mosaic technique is intuitive and fluid, resulting in a balance of geometry within an organic design. A love of color and contrast is evident in my work, and the medium of glass creates vibrancy and luminosity. I often adhere mosaics to clear glass, which allows light to pass through, casting color into the surrounding space.
In addition to my own solo work, I enjoy collaborating with groups to design and create public art, which engages, empowers, and unifies communities while adding artwork to blighted buildings and retaining walls.
While my designs and themes range between figurative and abstract, remarkably dimensional and very flat, monochromatic and extremely colorful, there is an unmistakable common aesthetic running through my work that involves flowing, intersecting lines and an expression of celebration and joy.
Applications for mosaic include permanent installations in buildings and outdoor spaces. Mosaic is touchable, washable, weather-resistant, and versatile. The work can be done on panels or mesh for ease of transport, then installed on site. I believe strongly in Public Art, as it enhances the quality of life for the whole of society, rather than an elite few. It brings beauty to our lives, encourages tourism in our cities, and offers new ways of seeing and interpreting the world.
Mosaic, specifically, can be done using bright, colorful materials for a vibrant effect, or with stone and tile or a more muted, organic outcome. The process of assembling cut and broken pieces into something whole and beautiful is very symbolic, and can be therapeutic both for artist and viewer.