Jeanean Songco Martin -- About the Artist

Plein-air painting in Ireland

Jeanean painting in Ireland

Jeanean is a full-time painter and a professional musician. Art and music go hand in hand and compliment each other. She is very active in the arts community with portrait and life drawing groups and conducts plein-air workshops locally in the Mid-Atlantic area and internationally. This May the workshops will be in Paris, Giverny and Provence France. In September she will return to one of her favorite places Ghost Ranch in Abiquii, New Mexico. She has taught painting and drawing at The Delaplaine Visual Arts Center , Rockville Arts Place, Hood College, Montgomery College and a 15 year span of teaching every summer at Common Ground on the Hill at McDaniel College in Westminster, MD. Jeanean is constantly striving to improve and refine her skills and looks forward to her next one person show focusing on work done in New Mexico.

ARTIST STATEMENT:

“In my work, I try to empathize with the retinal image, to try to find a connection in creating a “felt” sense of structure, form and value. I am a very tonal painter and utilize the value structure to create a sense of drama.

I always begin very gestural and loose; trying to get at the inner structure first to re-create the movement inside the form. My marks are results of a building process; strokes building form, creating a sense of depth and three-dimensionality. Color is introduced sometimes gently, inviting the thin washes to come into play or attacking the elusive momentary light condition with alla-prima painting. The thick and juicy stuff of paint is what I love and hope to preserve on the surface. I work towards a contrast of subtle passages with soft tones or rich glazes and strong direct painting continuously building, refining and reducing the image to its essential core."

My working method for the landscapes is to paint en plein-air. The small to medium sized works are done alla prima with very little change once brought into the studio. I do make some adjustments and additions but am very cautious not to lose the "freshness" from direct observation. They are "moments in time". I will sometimes return to the same place and the same time of day and weather conditions to continue working on a larger plein-air piece on consecutive days. I have been known to drag really large canvasses out of doors and work on site. I do still enjoy doing that because of the energy in the mark from a direct connection to the "physical experience" that is sometimes lost when working in the studio I also work in the studio from smaller plein-air paintings to create more formal and much larger interpretations. I use my sketchs and photographs for referencing but only after working on the site and being familiar with the landscape can I successfully interpret the forms and especially the color correctly. There is no substitute for actually "being there". The challenge is to keep the same energy and fluid mark that sparked the first impression.

JEANEAN SONGCO MARTIN

EDUCATION:

1975-1980: B.F.A. Cum laude in Painting, Maryland Institute College of Art, Baltimore, MD. Worked in traditional aspects of painting and drawing. Painting from still life, landscape and figure with emphasis on realistic interpretation.
1972-1974: Prince Georges Community College, Largo Md. Concentrated primarily on painting and fundamental drawing techniques. Participated in numerous student shows.

TEACHING AND RELATED HONORS:

2010 Plein air workshops in France May 17-30, New Mexico Sep. 20-30th
2009: Common Ground on the Hill at McDaniel College: week long Plein-air workshop. Private workshops: THREE DAYS - THREE FARMS, completed. PLEIN-AIR NEW MEXICO -Sep. 17-28th
2008: Plein air workshops, Ireland, Charleston SC, Tybee Island, GA,
2008-95: Common Ground on the Hill at McDaniel College taught painting and drawing
2007: Plein air workshops Chincoteague Island, Va, Harpers Ferry, WV
2006: Conducts “plein air” landscape workshops on site. Private and group lessons. Monitor for portrait and life drawing groups.
2005: Artist-in-Residence: I-Park, East Haddam, Connecticut
2000: Montgomery College, Rockville, MD. Basic painting. Delaplaine Arts Center, Frederick, MD. Basic painting, Drawing, Pastel
1996-97: Hood College. Landscape Painting
1997-93: Rockville Arts Place, Rockville, MD. Basic Drawing, , Life Drawing
1993-95: Montgomery County Adult Education & Recreation Department: Drawing/Painting After school programs: 8-12yrs. Toddlers: 2-3yrs. Artist-in-Residence: Hood College

EXHIBITIONS:

2009: Arts Barn Portrait Group Show: June CGOH Faculty Exhibition: Rice Gallery, McDaniel College, Westminster, MD July
2008: CGOH Faculty Exhibition: Rice Gallery, McDaniel College, Westminster, MD
2007: Group Invitational: Carroll County Arts Center “Lay of the Land”
2006: Solo Exhibition: “Landscapes & Figures” Carroll Community College, Westminster, MD
2006: CGOH, Faculty Exhibition: Rice Gallery, , McDaniel College, Westminster 2005: Group Exhibition: I-Park, East Haddam, CT
2004-1995: Solo and two person exhibits annually: Artist Gallery, Frederick, MD
1995: Group Exhibition: Ximo43, Basel, Switzerland 1994: Faculty Exhibition: Rockville Arts Place
1993: Solo Exhibition: Sugar & Frichtl Gallery, Kensington, MD
1992: “Free State” Maryland Artist, Rockville Arts Place, Rockville, MD
1991: Solo Exhibition: Rossig’s Frame Shop, New Market, MD Group Exhibition: Handwork’s Gallery, Kensington, MD
1990: Group Exhibition: Gaithersburg Fine Arts Association (juried show, 2nd place) Group Exhibition: Germantown Art League, Germantown, MD “Two Friends” Jefferson Plaza, Rockville, MD
1989: Solo Exhibition: Frame World, Bethesda, MD
1985: Alumni Exhibition: Prince George’s Community College
1981-85: Studio Tours: Commissioned work: Portraits, Still Life, Landscapes

NEW AFFILIATIONS:

2009: The Maryland Society of Portrait Painters
2009: Oil Painters of America

Jeanean Songco Martin » About the Artist

Plein-air painting in Ireland

Jeanean painting in Ireland