Art by Jeri Desrochers
Artists Statement My emotional reaction to the intense light and color of the western landscape inspires me to paint, expressing the joy and life I feel in vivid color and texture. The agricultural lands of the Rio Grande valley have a special place in my heart because I grew up on a small family-run farm. My paintings seek to honor the people who work close to the earth and revere the land that sustains them.Oil paint is my chosen tool to express this vivid landscape. I apply thick glossy paint over glowing transparent washes, a technique gleaned from my experiences as a watercolorist and glass artist. Layering contrasting and complimentary tones next to each other in thick, bold strokes over these transparent passages make the image shimmer and dance with color. These complex layers mixing and mingling in the viewer's eye creates effects of light similar to those of Pointillism with the contemporary twist of application with a palette knife.For me, painting is about the joy of color and texture; I paint my feelings about the place rather than a strict interpretation of reality. The landscape provides the representational basis for the abstracted play of color in the paint surfaces I create. "To surprise the hungry eye", poet John O'Donahue's phrase from The Artist at the Start of Day, expresses my desire to create visual surprise and delight, to speak to the eye and soul of the viewer hungry for beauty. That magic between the painter, the painting and the viewer is my ultimate goal. AWARDS AND EXHIBITS (Selected) "Cultivating Color Art Exhibit" - New Mexico Farm and Ranch Museum 2019 "Braceros - Melding History and Art Exhibit" Bone Creek Museum August - November 2019 Deming Art Center January 2018 Columbus Public Library March 2018 Branigan Cultural Center June - October 2018 Solo Show, "Transitions" Unsettled Gallery 2017 El Paso Public Arts Program Collection acquisition 2017 El Paso Public Art Program, Alameda Public Art Project, 2016 El Paso International Airport Art Windows, 2016 State of New Mexico Art in Public Places Public Art Purchase, 2015 Solo Show, "Now You're Home" Unsettled Gallery 2015 Sunbowl Exhibit at International Museum of Art, Best of Show 2014 Louisville National Fine Art Show 2014 El Paso Public Arts Program Collection acquisition 2014 Masterworks of New Mexico 2014 Western Refining Art Competition, Second Place 2014 Solo Show, "Valley Vitales" Unsettled Gallery 2013 El Paso Public Arts Program City Hall Arts Collection acquisition 2013 Solo Show, "Mesilla Valley Textures" Unsettled Gallery 2011 El Paso Arts International Exhibit, Best of Show 2010 Colorado Watercolor Society Signature Artist, 1991 - 2012 Colorado Springs Regional Juried Fine Art Exhibit, 1995 Boulder Art Association Open Juried Show, First place watercolor & Foothills Art Center Corporate Award, 1994 Colorado Watercolor Society Statewide Exhibition, 1995, 1994, 1993 Arjo/Wiggins USA: Arches & Rives Paper Award, 1993 Glenwood Springs Fall Art Festival, Second place figure & purchase award, Professional Watercolor Division, 1994 First place figure & third place figure, Professional Watercolor Division, 1993 Purchase award, Professional Watercolor Division, 1995 Louisville Fall Festival, Best of show, 1994 NPVAG National Juried Art Show, 1993 Phi Theta Kappa Six-state Art Competitive, 1993 Thompson Valley Regional Art Show, 1993COLLECTIONS (Selected) El Paso City Hall, Public Art Program collection, El Paso,Texas University Medical Center, El Paso, Texas La Clinica de Familia, La Mesa, NM Mount Evans Hospice, Evergreen, Colorado Jefferson Center for Mental Health, Wheat Ridge, ColoradoAll images and content Copyright Jeri Desrochers 2025