Jennifer & Brian Matthews "Perspectives in Nature" in Gallery I
Please join us for a Closing Reception on Friday, October 29, from 7-8:30 PM.
This exhibition is sponsored by the North Dakota Art Gallery Association with support from the North Dakota Council on the Arts, which receives funding from the State Legislature and the National Endowment for the Arts.
Wife and husband duo, Jennifer and Brian Matthews travel throughout North Dakota and surrounding states capturing the beauty of the natural world. Nature and wildlife is the focus of both artists, but each discovers a unique point of view that tell different stories. Often their work is the result of close collaboration in order to create dynamic artwork. This show is the result of their work together.
jennifer@jennifermatthewsnatureart.com
brian@redsneaker.net jennifermatthewnatureart.com
Badlands Bighorn by Jennifer Matthews
Jennifer Matthews is an artist from Bismarck, North Dakota, who is best known for her realistic wildlife and nature paintings. She uses a realistic style, because she feels that “the world is beautiful just the way it is, if we would only take the time to notice.” She has been drawn to the outdoors since she was a child, where she spent time exploring the countryside in western North Dakota near the Heart River.
Jennifer paints primarily in oil, utilizing the slow drying time for her blending and glazing techniques. She learned the fundamentals of art composition and technique in high school and since then has been self-taught. She feels that her best training has come from studying the details of nature and the work of her favorite wildlife artists.
Jennifer’s work has been featured in many regional art shows, including being the lead artist in a wildlife themed exhibition at The Arts Center in Jamestown, ND in the summer of 2020, having an upcoming solo exhibition at The James Memorial Art Center in December 2020 and being included in the Bison in Art show at the National Buffalo Museum in Jamestown, ND during the summer of 2019. She frequently displays her work at the Bismarck Art and Galleries Association in Bismarck, ND and was the featured member artist in November 2019. Jennifer was also chosen to participate in the Artist In Residency program at Lake Metigoshe State Park. She spent the 3rd week in July, 2019, at the park painting and working with the public. The residency was sponsored by the North Dakota Council on the Arts and the North Dakota State Parks and Recreation Department. Her work can also be found at www.jennifermatthewsnatureart.com.
JENNIFER: I fell in love with nature and wildlife as a child. Some of my favorite memories are of the times I spent exploring the countryside in western North Dakota, near the Heart River. I still love to explore, finding the quiet hidden details in the world that are all around us. Painting allows me to reveal the beauty of the environment and reminds us to slow down and reconnect with nature.
The first time I used oil paint in high school, I knew I found my medium. The slow drying time of oils lends itself well for blending techniques. I paint in a realistic style and work from background to foreground. Different areas of my paintings will have between 3 and 10 layers of paint, usually ending with a glaze.
I am on the constant lookout for just the right branch for a bird to perch on or the hidden path a mountain lion might take on his hunt. The natural environment provides so much beauty in the way the light and colors change from sunrise to sunset. I always notice the way the world changes from different atmospheric conditions such as sun, snow, rain or fog and from the beautiful changing of the seasons.
I use my art to help teach people about the importance of wildlife conservation, helping others to appreciate national and state parks and wildlife refuges. I hope my art helps others see the beauty in the world that I see and helps everyone slow down for just a moment and feel peace.
Bristle Transition by Brian Matthews
Brian Matthews is an artist from Bismarck, North Dakota who is known as a photography educator and enthusiast. He has taught a wide variety of photography-related classes including overviews and introductory classes to more advanced classes in Photoshop and Lightroom software, light painting, studio lighting, composition and many more.
Brian Matthews prints much of his work on acrylic sheets. He has said the reason is, “…to simplify the presentation of the images and focus on the textures within the photographs.” His early work was done with black and white film printed on large scale paper. The techniques used in the darkroom to enhance images are now replaced by computers and software. The paint brush used to correct the prints made from film has been replaced with a graphics tablet and pressure-sensitive stylus.
His images have been featured in regional art shows and chosen for the cover photos of publications and websites.
BRIAN: I enjoy pushing the boundaries of creating imagery of our natural world. My work extends beyond the boundary of what a photograph can be and fully utilizes cutting-edge technology. I do not limit myself to the images that the camera creates, and often utilize advanced processing techniques and multiple photographs to create a single image. The mixing of natural subjects like wildlife and landscapes paired with technology that is used to enhance, add or modify I find fascinating.
I fell in love with photography as a freshman in college. The “magic” of the darkroom and development processes fascinated me. As part of my final college photography class, I began making negatives using a computer instead of a camera. In 1997, I got my first digital camera and I found a new medium with endless possibilities. I am deeply interested in technology and have pursued that passion in a variety of ways. I have taught photography for over 20 years. My portfolio displays my wide-range of abilities to capture nature.