Jill Matthews

"Single Stem Hydrangea" Oil painting of a white hydrangea in a glass vase.

“I have been creating art on some level for as long as I can remember. Life has led me in various directions but one thing that has always remained a constant is my love for art and involving myself in the creative process. Jill was born and raised in the inspiring state of Vermont. She studied Fine Art at The University of Vermont and upon graduating with a B.S. in Art Education, she moved to San Diego California where she continued studying painting at The University of California San Diego. After a brief career as a fine art educator, she realized her true passion was being more hands on in creating and has been painting professionally ever since. Jill and her family have recently settled back on the east coast from the San Francisco area. She feels so fortunate to be living and working in the inspiring state of Maine. As with anything, art is a process and my recent work is representative of how it has evolved. One of the hardest things as an artist is to find a voice in your work. I spent a long time focusing on replicating things that I saw rather truly seeing them through an artistic eye. My work now is based on an initial idea or vision, I still will use some references in the process, but my most successful moments in painting happen when I lose that security and the work is coming from within. Adding, editing, allowing color interaction to happen, letting the painting take it’s own direction…that is when I truly emerge as an artist.”