Artist Spotlight: Jennifer Packer

Header Image: "How Do I Love You", 2014-15. Oil on canvas on board.

Every single painting that Jennifer Packer makes is political. This is in part because her mere presence as a Black woman can turn things political. But she also deliberately infuses these political messages into her paintings. Packer often asks the people in her life to be subjects in her works. By depicting them in paint, she’s creating a message that the people in her work deserve to be recognized and deserve to exist.

There’s a soft, ethereal quality to her paintings. The soft brushstrokes with little to no discernible borders bring about the emotions of her sitters. Even when she’s painting a lifeless object, it’s still brimming with evocations of emotions. Packers’s works are rooted in her personal memories and experiences, giving them emotional weights not always seen in still-life paintings. 

“My inclination to paint, especially from life, is a completely political one. We belong here. We deserve to be seen and acknowledged in real-time. We deserve to be heard and to be imaged with shameless generosity and accuracy.” - Jennifer Parker

View more of Jennifer Packer's works here.