About Jane Cassidy
'Creativity has always been a part of my life
since I was a very young girl.
My inspiration and quest to understand life
translates to the canvas.'
I have lived in New Mexico since 2004, but made the conscious decision to move here in 1994 when I first visited Santa Fe. It was love at first sight: the art, the diverse culture, the beautiful desert, and the magical spirit that prevails captured my soul. However, it wasn't as an adult that I was first introduced to the southwest, but as a very young girl at home in Indiana. My parents had visited Santa Fe in the mid-50's. They brought a few precious treasures back and I especially remember a hand blown amber glass ball. I used to gaze at it and daydream about its mystical origins. Unaware, I was gazing into my future some forty years later.
Paralleling this enthusiasm for the arts has always been my love of nature which I contribute to the green thumb of my grandmother. As a young girl, I would get lost in the maze of her lush gardens! I am so grateful for her Irish heritage, as her interest in the plant world became my own. I soon began painting the plant life around me and in my early teens, I was studying innocent and primitive painters, especially the art of Henri Rousseau.
Looking back, it seems only natural that one day New Mexico would become my home. It offers everything I have always loved about the artistic life, the diversity of the culture, and the beauty of the desert.
I am inspired to paint plants and animals, landscapes, contemportary textured paintings, as well as sacred and retablo inspired paintings. My paintings of Lady of Guadalupe and St. Francis are created with a thick acrylic medium, which is carved and sculpted and then painted, giving the finished effect of carved wood.
My formal studies began in high school and continued in college at Indiana University. In addition to canvas painting, I have done a series of murals found in public and private settings. In 2007, I was the featured artist in a national cable series, The Art of Living on Veria Cable Network. My segment, The Painted Desert, delves in the importance of art as an individual healing practice, a community experience, and a benefit for all of culture. In addition to many private collectors, I am honored to have a The Lady of Guadalupe as part of a public collection at the St. Luke's Episcopal Church in Rhode Island.
GALLERY REPRESENTATION
Indigo Gallery, Madrid, NM 2004 - Present