Artist Statement

My art is a manifestation of the merging of my inner and outer worlds, a meditation on the parallel but often conflicting experiences of internal and external identities. Just as any act of creation reveals the shifting essences of the temporal energies within each moment spent creating, so the finished painting reflects the qualities of my mind throughout the artistic process.

My medium is an active participant in the dialogue—not a passive, inert substance. Resin, dyes, inks, and pigments are the vehicle for transformation, a literal conduit for the revelation of inner experience materializing in a tangible, external plane. Yet simultaneously the materials have wills of their own, and getting them to work together is a dance. Through engaging each medium’s unique characteristics, a sophisticated dance is begun, a dance of listening and learning rather than imposing and conquering, the thesis and antithesis of my artistic intention synthesizing with understanding the physical characteristics of the mode of representation. 
​

BIOGRAPHY
​
Jennifer Haley was born and raised on Long Island, New York. From her earliest days she had a passion for the arts, and found herself exploring every available aspect of a future artistic life. She acted in plays, sang in the choir, played flute, cello, and sousaphone. She also won national awards in dramatic performance, traveling the country on the speech and debate team. She received her BA at Florida State University, where she studied acting and all areas of theater. Working formally within the inherently interdisciplinary art form of theater, Jennifer found her interests shifting towards backstage, to the less publicly visible but utterly vital elements of creating a theatrical world. With her musical background, she became intrigued with how sound design interacts with the other elements of performance to build and enhance the stage experience. This curiosity led her to receive a Master of Fine Arts degree at the University of Delaware's Technical Theater Program. Although music and sound are still a critical part of her atmosphere and a great influence on her present art, in her master’s program Jennifer was further guided to explore all the technical elements of theater, including set and prop design—an avenue that changed her life and finally focused her boundless creative energies into one form. The act of creating real, material, necessary objects with her own hands was unlike any artistic experience she’d had, and her newfound passion for painting and designing was immediately apparent in the quality of her produced work.
Upon graduation, Jennifer worked as a freelance scenic artist and prop artisan in various cities, until finally settling San Francisco. There her desire for independence and more personal freedom grew, as the demands of presenting live theater began to wear on her creative faculties. To care for her own love of the art and to find new avenues of inspiration, travel became an intrinsic part of her life. She needed, then, to bring those experiences home and apply them to her work. She transitioned into working for herself, as a muralist and decorative painter. For many years this was a rewarding career, but ultimately a new artistic restlessness stirred in her and she sought a more personal outlet for her creativity. A process without boundaries, an expression of pure passion and complete physical and emotional engagement. Inspired by music, abstract expressionism, travel, and solitude, Jennifer has now found the medium in which her self resonates most truthfully. She has been working in epoxy resin for over half a decade, and Jennifer Haley’s pieces in this medium reflect her lifelong search for and newly found great joy and authenticity. She currently lives in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. She relishes spending time with friends and family, traveling the world, and practicing buddhism at the KMC Buddhist Temple in Fort Lauderdale.