Jessica Jane Russell

Jessica Jane Russell’s work is informed by a background in architectural theory, her engagement with children, and experiences as a parent. Collecting and assembling objects in space, she undertakes transformative material processes to address pre-verbal and adverse childhood experiences. Russell’s work offers a healing space for integration of these early life experiences. She combs the landscape of family, salvaging objects and stories relevant to her life as a parent, inspired by creative resilience, and the pursuit of joy. She creates provisional forms and precarious arrangements, mimicking the scale, color and forms of children’s creative processes, stories, and perceptions. The process-focused work also reflects on collective global traumas such as the pandemic, gun violence, and environmental collapse.

Jessica Russell is an Australian-American artist, educator, writer and curator, with a background in architecture. She works as a multimedia artist creating immersive experiences in non-traditional spaces. Jessica has received awards for her co-creative work with children, including a 2018 Creativity Award from the Northwest CT Arts Council. Curatorial work includes pop-up events in galleries and non traditional spaces in upstate NY and Northwest CT. Published writing includes a Substack on art excursions for families, called Art Juice, and articles on artists’ studio visits for Litchfield Magazine 2015 - 2018. Recent group exhibitions include Within This Expanse, The Post Office, Port Ewen NY, Nov 2022; Anthropocene, The Gallery, Woodbury CT, Feb 2019. Solo exhibitions include Jessica Jane, EBK gallery, Hartford CT, Dec 2016. Her work is in private collections in the US and Australia. She holds a Masters degree in Architecture from Yale University.