The flier for Candace Jean's "Teeny Tiny Royalty Show" is a beautiful piece of art in itself. It's an ink and watercolor drawing in muted colors depicting an intricate, William Morris-style pattern of leaves and flowers, with a tattoo-like centerpiece of animals in the shape of a crown. On the invitation to the show sent out in the mail, the crown is a pop-up. The piece is a curiously alluring mixture of old-fashioned and contemporary, as are many of her works.
Jean, who was born and raised in Riverton, will be opening her second solo show at Cathedral Tattoo Friday. She says the name for the show came to mind early on in the process, but the content for it has metamorphosed over time.
"The theme was finally narrowed to be nothing about royalty, actually not in the sense you'd normally think of it," she says. "Instead it has come to showcase bits of nature man has given a monarchial status to in namesake. The show will contain some forms easily recognized and others you may never have heard of, along with a small placard of facts about the species. I think sometimes people forget about having wonder, and how fascinating things around us can be."
With a fondness for miniature things, Jean was interested in creating tiny pieces in mixed media for the current show.
"I marvel at the fact that every 'thing' is made up of living, self-sufficient miniscule bits to form that whole," she says. "I'd rather make a piece that I can cradle while I work -- never took to easels -- and fill up that 'thing' with as many tiny bits as it calls for. I'm drawn to detail. I work very slowly, I get in close, and I often hold my breath as I steadily draw that final line."
Jean is the oldest of six kids and says that every member of her family is creative in their own way.
"We can all draw and paint, but some of us excel at writing, sewing, woodworking, theater or dance," she says. "A lot of our clothes and gifts were handmade while growing up, and they were fantastic."
She adds that her parents provided her with the inspiration to become an artist. "I remember being very young and laying on my tummy on the floor with my dad. We shared a coloring book and crayons and he was teaching me to stay inside the lines. I was astonished at how smooth he could make the color appear with directional strokes; it was a completely new concept and I really wanted to be able to do it, too," she says.
"I also remember peeking over the edge of our dining room table at my mom making painfully perfect brush strokes with tiny bristles when she used to do tole painting in the '80s. I also wanted to paint with such careful focus. I suppose the curiosity and drive has just always been in me."
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The flier for Candace Jean's "Teeny Tiny Royalty Show" is a beautiful piece of art in itself. It's an ink and watercolor drawing in muted colors depicting an intricate, William Morris-style pattern of leaves and flowers, with a tattoo-like centerpiece of animals in the shape of a crown. On the invitation to the show sent out in the mail, the crown is a pop-up. The piece is a curiously alluring mixture of old-fashioned and contemporary, as are many of her works.
Jean, who was born and raised in Riverton, will be opening her second solo show at Cathedral Tattoo Friday. She says the name for the show came to mind early on in the process, but the content for it has metamorphosed over time.
"The theme was finally narrowed to be nothing about royalty, actually not in the sense you'd normally think of it," she says. "Instead it has come to showcase bits of nature man has given a monarchial status to in namesake. The show will contain some forms easily recognized and others you may never have heard of, along with a small placard of facts about the species. I think sometimes people forget about having wonder, and how fascinating things around us can be."
With a fondness for miniature things, Jean was interested in creating tiny pieces in mixed media for the current show.
"I marvel at the fact that every 'thing' is made up of living, self-sufficient miniscule bits to form that whole," she says. "I'd rather make a piece that I can cradle while I work -- never took to easels -- and fill up that 'thing' with as many tiny bits as it calls for. I'm drawn to detail. I work very slowly, I get in close, and I often hold my breath as I steadily draw that final line."
Jean is the oldest of six kids and says that every member of her family is creative in their own way.
"We can all draw and paint, but some of us excel at writing, sewing, woodworking, theater or dance," she says. "A lot of our clothes and gifts were handmade while growing up, and they were fantastic."
She adds that her parents provided her with the inspiration to become an artist. "I remember being very young and laying on my tummy on the floor with my dad. We shared a coloring book and crayons and he was teaching me to stay inside the lines. I was astonished at how smooth he could make the color appear with directional strokes; it was a completely new concept and I really wanted to be able to do it, too," she says.
"I also remember peeking over the edge of our dining room table at my mom making painfully perfect brush strokes with tiny bristles when she used to do tole painting in the '80s. I also wanted to paint with such careful focus. I suppose the curiosity and drive has just always been in me."
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Graduating from Bingham High "ages ago," Jean took some design courses that landed her in her current marketing job.
"I went to Salt Lake Community College right out of high school, but never pursued a real degree, sadly," she says. "I regret that and would love to go back to school. I miss science and English classes and crave some good art instruction."
Jean took a hiatus from art a few years ago, and the urge to create again rose from a time of hardship, with a new stylistic approach and a powerful determination to make it a part of her life once more.
"I set up online shops, discovered local craft show events and built enough courage to approach The Women's Art Center about consignment opportunities," she says. "From there things kept growing, I've since received invitations to be a part of various gallery shows and have been given my second solo show."
Jean has known the owners of Cathedral for a long time and says she's thrilled to be showing there. "Not only is being near old friends when exposing new work reassuring, I feel my art is appreciated by a demographic that is already familiar with Cathedral," she says. "They are also breaking boundaries a bit by opening their shop to be a part of Gallery Stroll. Tattoos are a more readily accepted part of society these days and people realize that they are another form of art. To house a fine arts exhibition in a tattoo shop joins the two worlds."
Part-owner of Cathedral Tattoo, CJ Fishburn says he enjoys Jean's work because it demonstrates everything has its own life. "When you are not watching is when private little worlds can exist without you. That linear thread, giving each little thing its own story, it allows the world to be meaningful," he says.
With regard to Jean's future, she says she hopes it involves fireflies. "I've never seen them!" she says.
"I have many things, experiences, on my life's to-do list and am individually checking them off. I'd love a bigger house with chickens in the yard and to have adopted a retired racing greyhound. I dream of having an atrium full of birds and plants and a study with floor-to-ceiling books. I want to write and illustrate children's stories and to show in those galleries I idolize from magazines, next to all of those other fascinating artists I consider celebrities. Someday!"
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