Born in New Westminster, BC, Jan spent most of her life on the west coast of BC.  The essence of the place where she lives is imbedded in her work.  She maintains an independent studio practice on Salt Spring Island, BC.  Jan loves walking, it’s an important aspect of her creative process as is the garden and nature.

Could you tell us about your journey as an artist?

I graduated BFA from NSCAD focusing on intaglio printmaking; I worked as a printmaker until 1998 when I began working in metalsmithing and enamel.  I make jewelry and small-scale sculptural objects; primarily I work with enamel on metal.  I make enamel work because I love the material, its unpredictably and sensual qualities.  Enamelling is the process of fusing ground glass to metal under high temperature conditions.  The piece is fired numerous times in a kiln at 1400-1500 F to melt or fuse the glass onto the metal; in my work there can be up to 30 firings.  There are number of techniques in enameling and I use champlevé, sifting in combination with sgraffito and stenciling and Limoges.

My journey into enamelling and metalsmith began when living in Seattle I randomly attended a jewellery symposium and saw the work of Maria Phillips. I was captivated by her work; the work was electroformed copper, enamel, steel and gut unlike anything I has seen.  I was unclear how it was made and wanted to learn more; I convinced Maria to take me on as an assistant.  The rest is history.         

What experiences inspired you to make your pieces, or how, conceptually, did your work come to be?

My mother was an avid textile crafts person, skilled seamstress, quilting and applique, crochet and knitter, both hand and machine, and fantastic gardener.  My parents loved music, reading and took us to galleries, dance and music events. 

I loved drawing, in elementary school I drew all over my exercise books until a teacher gave me a special book just for drawing.  I was allowed to use it when ever my regular work was done; I have no doubt it made marking much easier for her. I was fortunate to have excellent art classes thorough out elementary and high school which included ceramics and printmaking.  In elementary school on a field trip, we went to UBC where Bill Reid and Doug Cranmer were carving.  I’m unclear if they were carving the frontal board of Mortuary pole, for Totem Park or other parts of the Haida longhouse.  In any case, I was captivated, it was the first time I has seen artists working. When returning home I excitedly told my folks that was what I was going to do; I was going be an artist and make sculpture. 

I saw travelling exhibitions that were organized from the Canada Council Art Bank collection.  One piece in particular stood out “O CANADA 1970” a lithograph by Joyce Wieland in which she while wearing bright red lipstick, sang the national anthem while pressing her lips to a lithographic stone with each syllable. The resulting print shows rows of lips in various stages of opening and closing.  When I attended NSCAD in Halifax I learnt the print had been printed there in the Master Print shop by master printer Bob Rogers.  Bob was the lithography professor when I attended that school.  Interesting to have the opportunity to tell Bob the effect the print had on me.     

What responses from the audiences do you experience most often? How do audience reactions compliment your work and its message?

What I hear often about my work is, “Where do your ideas come from?” or people say, “they remind them of something.”  My aim to is to craft pieces that draw viewers in, giving them pause to look more closely, create a sense of wonder.  My work is intentionally vague comprised of simple shapes with the ambiguity of hidden layers, textural surfaces and marks not to obscure meaning rather to arouse the imagination.  I am asking the viewer to reflect on what they see and ponder their own interpretations.  

How does your everyday routine impact your art and your creative process? 

I generally begin my day walking; it quiets my mind about mundane tasks and obligations.  It allows me to begin to move into “my world” and provides diverse avenues of inspiration, often I gather materials whilst walking.

When not in the studio I love gardening it provides both a physical outlet and visual stimulus and feeds my work in several ways.

I visit exhibitions; it offers an opportunity to observe and learn about other creative concepts and learn from others’ approaches.  I enjoy the chance to attend openings and talk to artists about their work as it provide newfound perspectives on the work.