Meet Jennifer Perkins | Landscape Painter and Avid Traveler

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jennifer Perkins and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jennifer, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
When I was in college, I had a goal of becoming a professional painter. I graduated from college, got married, started working, went to graduate school to get my education degree, and life took over. I stopped making art entirely after I started teaching it full time in the public school setting. After relocating to Utah from Seattle, Washington after a divorce, I was in my seventh year of teaching, and I hadn’t made a lot of friends so I got back into painting as a way to entertain myself in a new place. I set up a small studio space in the basement I was renting and spent the majority of my free time working on my art. When I was in college, I painted mostly portraits. After having traveled extensively since then and being very active in the outdoor community, I found myself drawn to landscape art. I started painting scenes from my adventures and hanging them around the house in common areas for my roommates to enjoy. Whenever we had company over, they always commented on my artwork and how much they liked it. I got so much positive feedback and encouragement from my friends and roommates while I started getting burnt out on teaching so I wanted to give myself an opportunity to get my art out there with the goal of transitioning out of full time teaching and into working as a professional artist. I left my job early and rented a studio space in Taos, New Mexico which is a sort of art mecca for emerging artists. I spent six weeks building my website and painting full time while I was there. I met with gallery owners and other artists to discuss the process of becoming a working artist, I reached out to people I know online who were working full time as artists to get tips and pointers on how to get started. The biggest challenge was getting into a consistent studio habit. It took a year for me to get to where I was painting on a large scale consistently as well as how to build a website, form a LLC, how to market myself using social media. I think people get discouraged from pursuing their creative hobbies as careers because they don’t know how to get started or don’t have the time, but for me, the trick was just chipping away over time at tasks that needed to be accomplished. It was also super helpful to reach out to other artists and ask for help. Every person I reached out to was more than happy to help me work through issues and it really helped me feel a sense of encouragement from a community of other creative entrepreneurs. I’m extremely grateful that I’m up and running as an artist. Managing a business is a daily task. I create content for my social media accounts, try to paint every day, am contacting galleries for representation, working on commissioned pieces for patrons, and applying to art exhibits and shows as well as artist residencies. I wake up every morning stoked about my day and my artwork and what opportunities it may bring!

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
My artwork is inspired by my love of the outdoors and my travels. When I visited the Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies in Banff, Canada a few years ago, I stopped in front of a painting of Bow Falls painted in the early 1900s. I had actually hiked to the same waterfall the day prior so I instantly recognized the waterfall. The painting I saw before me was slightly different than what I had seen the day before, but I couldn’t put my finger on how it was different. I pulled out my phone and opened a photograph I had taken that was close the same spot the painter stood while painting the image. The difference was that in the painter’s version completed almost 100 years ago, there was a glacier perched on top of the waterfall. In my photograph, the glacier was completely gone. I started thinking about artwork in terms of historical documentation. Out natural world is changing rapidly. The images I paint are a way of documenting those areas: national parks, wilderness areas, protected and wild lands, in a way that is more mindful and contemplative than taking a photograph. Ultimately, photography provides scientific documentation, but it doesn’t always convey the mood and the experience of the artist. When I paint an image, I remember the sound of the wind as it blew through the evergreen trees, the way the light shifted across the snow capped peaks, the sound of bugs warming themselves on a rock in the summer sun. I use my art as a way to slow down and be more mindful about my connection to these natural places. When I take a photograph, I have a relationship with my camera, not with the land itself. When I paint a picture, my mind wanders through the experience surrounded with the image; the weather, the effort it took to get to that spot, my emotional and mental state that had me seek out the beauty of nature, the people that were with me during the experience, the way that place helped me grow as an individual. I often travel alone, spending months living out of the back of my truck in remote places, and my travels as a solo female along with my progress as an artist has helped me become a stronger and more confident woman. I think people who value art education know that learning how to express yourself in a creative way builds acceptance, self love, confidence, resiliency, and community. In school, I was always involved with art classes and I think that having that outlet definitely helped me become a driven and goal oriented person. In addition to making progress as an artist, I’ve also become a confident woman in the outdoor community. Originally from Georgia, had you told me ten years ago that I would own crampons and an ice ax, I would have said you were crazy. After taking classes with the Mountaineers in Olympia, Washington, I am confident in my ability to access difficult outdoor terrain. I did my first glacier climb two years ago, I’ve repelled off arches in Utah, I’ve dabbled in canyoneering, and completed several multi-day backpacking trips both as a group and on my own. My artwork allows me to combine my most uplifting activities into one so that I’m able to earn income.
I wouldn’t say that it’s been difficult for me to become a working artist. Part of starting a business especially if you are an artist, is loving the process of creating! I always feel off balance if I go a few days without being in the studio. I love the process of making art and therefore do not find it difficult to devote time to my professional life.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Utah has some of the most impressive and aw inspiring landscapes in the United States. It really is a state for all seasons. Epic skiing in the winter, great mountain biking during the summer, and the fall and spring provides the perfect weather to explore the desert regions and national parks. Utah has five national parks! If you have a week in Utah, depending on the season, there is plenty to do! If you’re in Salt Lake City, you can visit Antelope Island State Park and get an epic view of the Wasatch mountains from the shore of the Great Salt Lake. You can also learn about how the Great Salt Lake is shrinking and the potential environmental impact that will have on the surrounding area. Antelope Island also has a bison herd! The Wasatch mountain range has endless miles of mountain bike trails as well as incredible hiking and backpacking opportunities. My favorite hike is to the various lakes at Brighton Ski Resort. I’ve seen a moose almost every time I’ve visited that area. The Uintas, just a short drive from Salt Lake City, offers great BLM camping and backpacks that do no require a permit. The lakes in this area also have abundant trout for anglers. Wall Lake is a fantastic day hike. On the way back, you can always stop in Park City and check out the Banksy original “Camera Man and Flower.”
Salt Lake City also has a very vibrant art scene and commissions several mural artists every year to paint murals around the city. They hold a mural festival every spring honoring the hard work of these artists as they unveil their new work. There are lots of great breweries in Salt Lake City. Wasatch Brew Pup is a great way to sample local beers and delicious pub food. Additional great restaurants are Sushi Groove and Tsunami which both offer fantastic vegetarian sushi menus. I’m a vegetarian and Salt Lake City does have some great vegetarian restaurants. My favorites are Vertical Diner and Mark of the Beastro. Other restaurants to note are Long Life Vegi House and Big O Donuts (completely vegan).
Just an hour and half south of Salt Lake City is Fifth Water Hot Springs, a natural hot spring that offers a great hike year round into a canyon and to various deep blue pools of heated water. It gets super crowded so it’s best to go very early or later. Bring a head lamp! During the summer, the reservoirs are a great place to boat or paddle board. Jordanelle Reservoir is at the base of the Wasatch Mountains and is a great place to cool off. Additionally, floating the Weber river and always a blast. This is typically done in an inner tube and there are a few companies that offer rentals and shuttles.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
There are so many people that have helped me make progress over the last year. My roommates, Sarah, Grace, and neighbor Cynthia, were always so encouraging and their feedback and promotion definitely helped me keep painting when I got discouraged. I’m grateful for my friend Riley who is always available to answer my photography and laptop questions. I’m also very grateful for two other artists who have helped me figure out marketing online as well as providing encouragement during the startup portion of the business, Riley Lubich in Moab, Utah and Candace Fincher in Carrollton, Georgia. Both amazing artists and strong women in the art world! Additionally, I’d like to thank friends who have become patrons of my art by purchasing artwork or commissioning personal pieces! One of my outdoor recreation mentors, Meryl Lassen, recently commissioned a piece and I was so happy she reached out to me for her artwork. I’d also like to thank my partner, Dob. He’s given me the space and time and love I needed to keep going even during my lowest days when I thought all the hard work and effort was pointless.

Website: www.jenperkinspaintings.com

Instagram: JenniferNomadTravels (travel and art) and JenPerkinsPaintings (artwork and business site)

Facebook: JenPerkins Paintings