"World Traveler / Shelter at Home" painting series

     I contracted the Covid virus this spring-- after a few feverish nights I had an idea for a new painting series-- World Traveler / Shelter at Home.  Vernacular photos are the inspiration for my paintings.  A friend gave me 27 boxes of vintage travel slides found in an Asbury Park thrift store. I felt this was the perfect time to immerse myself --painting images of far flung adventures as I shelter at home. On transparent mylar, I employ reverse painting thus creating an illusion of pictorial depth. The transparency of the painting surface relates to the photographic process of the source material-- creating both a dissolving quality and visual uncertainty ultimately referencing memory. World Traveler / Shelter at home painting series is both an homage to the exhaustive slide collection and adventures of one individual; but also, a somber reflection of our collective loss of freedom during the pandemic.
Website: www.dianajensen.com   Instagram: #jensenmania



BIO
     Currently based in NYC, Diana Jensen makes paintings and installations that reference found vernacular photographs from the 1960s to the present day. Her art making focus is in documenting both the emotional connection and cultural impact of photo collecting.
     Jensen's recent solo exhibition, "A Decade in Dumbo: 4 Installations" was featured at Chashama Space @One Brooklyn Bridge Park. Her paintings have been exhibited widely including such venues as: The Visual Art's Center of New Jersey; SafeTGallery, Brooklyn; White Columns, NYC; Bucheon Gallery, San Francisco; Artemisia Gallery, Chicago; The Newark Museum, and The Islip Art Museum.