Artist Profile: Jazmine Giffen

Name:

Jazmine Giffen

Hometown:

Seattle

Current Neighborhood:

Riverside

Your Medium/Craft:

Painting, digital art, screen printing, block printing, photography, spray paint, ceramics.

Years doing your craft:

15 years

How did you first get started in your craft?

I first dabbled in art 15 years ago with an arts program at Seattle Art Museum where I studied photography. From there I decided I must have art in my life in all ways, so I went to college in Portland, Pacific Northwest College of Art, and learned just about every medium I could before deciding that I can’t just pick one art niche to exist in, I want to do it all.

Favorite Artist(s) and/or Inspirations?

Arnold Butler, his simplistic but colorful and dramatic paintings bring life into my soul, I will always admire someone who prefers ginormous difficult to paint canvases. Think of the whole wall rather than a painting to go on that wall.

Light & shadows. There is something magical to me about the sun and light and the shadows they create which completely inspires my painting style.

Favorite Piece You've Created?

In 2017 I showed a series of “icon paintings” in which I painted dozens of icons after polling nearly everyone I know. The list was hundreds long but the final portraits consisted of a couple dozen celebrity and cultural icons such as: Frida Kahlo, Etta James, Patti Smith, Salvador Dali, Tupac, Liz Taylor, MLK Jr. and so many more. They’ve all since found homes but it was my most fun project to date.

What’s the most challenging part of being an artist, or something you had to overcome?

As someone who suffers from OCD, being an artist can be incredibly hard on my self-esteem as I want everything to be as perfect and put together as possible. I’ve had to learn to not be so hard on myself, to accept that even if I see flaws in one of my paintings or illustrations that most of the time, no one will even notice it.

How can people be supportive of the arts?

Buy your friends’ art! Support local artists. If you’re looking for something custom reach out to the artists you know in your circle, chances are they wear more hats than you think!

Favorite place in Everett to eat?

The Strawberry Patch on Colby. Bora the owner is the best and going in every time feels like hanging with friends.

Favorite place in Everett to hang?

Howarth Park right on the water. Picnic up on the grass and then walking down to the beach is a favorite pastime of me, my husband and our 9-year-old daughter.

What's next for you?

Since the start of the new civil uprising; The George Floyd Rebellion, I’ve shifted all of my work to bringing awareness to police brutality, racism in America, and the unfair justice system. I’m offering my artistic services to social justice campaigns, movements and organizations pro bono from now until forever and this has kept me very busy the last two months.

Previously I worked for the ACLU’s grassroots campaign People Power, the Bernie Sanders campaign, and also for Barack Obama’s first and reelection campaigns. Working in proximity to politics with art has always been something important to me.

Where can people see more of your art?

You can find me on Instagram where I am most active in terms of posts and art sales. You can also find me on Etsy as Posterized Portraits.

Images courtesy of Jazmine Giffen

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