JESSICA GORDON
At Summer’s End
Jessica Gordon has always been a passionate person. She’s channeled that passion in many ways, including equestrianism and scuba diving, but it was only after having children, and looking for a creative outlet to express herself outside her caregiving role, that she first picked up a paintbrush. Her first solo show, At Summer’s End, will be on view at Robert Lange Studios in September.
As she only started painting seriously about four years ago, Gordon considers these paintings as part of her “college years.” “I’m still in my experimental phase,” she explains. “Being creative, figuring out what I’m comfortable painting and what my themes, my subject matter, my style will be.”
The works in the Robert Lange show reflect a spectrum of different moods and approaches, but they all represent feelings from Gordon’s recent season of life. “They’re bittersweet,” Gordon describes. “That’s why I titled the show At Summer’s End. It’s the end of something, but the beginning of something new. It’s beauty and joy and pain all mixed together.”
In For the Weary, the subject is almost completely submerged in water. She says, “It was really hard to choose a title, because I didn’t want to steer with titles. But I realized it fit—it’s a little like a card, or a hug. Something that says, ‘This is for you.’” Gordon hopes
that when viewers see the woman in the painting, serene as the water overtakes her, they will be reminded that even in times of heartbreak or overwhelming situations that they are not alone. “Everyone can relate to those feelings,” she says.
Inspired by an image that caught her eye during the photo shoot Gordon conducted for For the Weary, she has begun a series of paintings of legs. En Pointe features a ballerina’s legs in the classic ballet position, while For Kicks depicts its subject in jeans and a grungy pair of Converse. Gordon says, “They are more lighthearted and graphic, in a way...I don’t want to do the same painting over and over, but I can see having fun and exploring the endless possibilities within this theme.”
At Summer’s End will open with a reception September 7 from 6 to 8 p.m. and remain on view through September 27.