Janet O'Neal's Dream Studio

Award-winning, mixed-media artist/photographer Janet O'Neal's studio is enviable - 1,300 square feet touting a high ceiling, lots and lots of light, storage galore, huge work tables accommodating her multiple, on-going projects, a large format printer tucked into one corner ,and a charming shrine - a quiet oasis amid all

 the hustle and bustle of a dynamic studio.

STILL AT IT AFTER ALL THESE YEARS...

When I asked Janet when she realized that art was her passion, she  pointed to one of the photos in her shrine..."I was born with a talent and my parents encouraged me along the way. I love doing art that makes a difference in the world and opens people's hearts."

Over the years, she has worked in a variety of media- printmaking, sculpture, photography, but her current passion is conceptional, 2 & 3D multi-media and installation work which she showcased recently in Oklahoma City's - ARTSPACE at UNTITLED. Her solo show - ONE THOUSAND TEARS - was conceived in part as a homage to her brother's passing  five years ago this spring. She began creating photographs about him, connecting with his essence as a young child before his life became tangled and troubled as an adult.

 "It was a cathartic and healing process for me," explains Janet, "and out of this came the show about how art can heal." 

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She also created two large installation pieces  for the show that fit beautifully with the universal themes of grief, loss and the  healing process. A large, sculpted heart with a thousand cast-resin tear drops - like the folding of a thousand cranes - sends a message of piece to the world. 

The second piece, a full-scale canoe, sits proudly in her studio; its' amazing to see the work and thought that went into the piece. The sides of the canoe are made up of haunting photographs of refugees who drowned seeking asylum. These acrylic panels, explains Janet, were made to look transparent and crackling like skin - representing the 'hides' of humanity. It  took months and months of research and then there was the process of creating the skins.

Her dream installation project, she says , would be to create a large scale 'canoe' for a museum - like the TATE -  with faces from around the world on the skins. She's in the process of writing a grant to set that in motion.

A WALK THROUGH THE STUDIO

"Everything that I've learned is from working with practicing artists all over the country," she explains. "I've learned more in this way than taking any class in college." And when she learns and masters a skill, she will turn around and teach it to others in one of her workshops.

One question... Does she ever sleep?

CONTACT:  JANET O'NEAL

SANTA FE STUDIO BY APPOINTMENT

505-466-4251

www.janetoneal.com

AND TOMORROW, DECEMBER 13TH

HOLIDAY FLASH SALE

ALL STUDIO WORK 20% OFF

4 CUESTA ROAD, ELDORADO