Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Jenna Burleson-Davis. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Jenna, appreciate you joining us today. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

Hey, thanks for having me!  My most meaningful project has probably been the series of paintings I’ve done recently on tension and interconnected humanhood.  I think that so many things in life, especially parenthood, have opened my eyes to how fundamentally connected we all actually have to be with one another.  These paintings sort of express that interconnectedness.

It’s something I’ve been wrestling with.  One one hand, I’ve felt for a while like our culture in the US can emphasize individualism to a degree that it almost vilifies any kind of dependence. But, then I also think most of us eventually realize that some level of dependence is necessary for surviving (and really, thriving) in a human community. You know, though, I didn’t fully get this before having children. I was married, living abroad, lecturing on business strategy, and feeling a certain sense of control, almost a type of hubris about independence. From this sort of blinded clarity, I stepped into some new realities with motherhood, and it kind of knocked the intellectual breath out of me. I mean, this part of life – recreating and nurturing new life – is a pretty elemental part of human existence, but my former independent self was thrown for a loop!  Things got confusing and suddenly didn’t have many straightforward answers, and then there was also this new relentless needing of me, and, also, really, my needing of others, that I struggled to welcome.  It was like I realized that I needed an entirely new mental model where I could fold in all this new experience.  I mean, I’m still working on that one!

But, honestly, painting sort of became one way to work through these new realities.  I came to feel that our culture’s individualistic model was shortsighted and, well, just too simple, and, at the end of the day, incomplete. It was like – I guess we simply are interconnected. We are kind of pulling on and being pulled on by one another, and it isn’t really nefarious either. Our trajectories are each altered as they intertwine, yes, and also, each twist actually, beautifully, allows for a new direction.

So, for these entangled paintings, I start the process by creating these temporary soft sculptures made from some of my favorite clothing pieces.  I very carefully arrange them into these interconnected knots, photograph them, and then I paint the image onto canvas.  When I put the finished painting on the wall, it almost feels like I am ordaining these ambiguous dynamics somehow complete in their entanglement.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Right!  Absolutely!  So, my interests have always sort of spanned a variety of industries.  For instance, in college, I studied communications, art, theology, and international studies.  Then, I went to grad school for business management, and eventually found myself teaching business strategy and some systems thinking. Currently, I consult on strategic planning for businesses. I also oil paint about the interdynamics of humanhood. You know, a variety of interests!  At my core, I think I’m just sort of an interdisciplinary thinker.  I like to conceptualize things and then visualize them.

Painting has really been an interesting processing activity for me. I don’t paint for other people; I don’t paint to sell my work. It’s more of a challenging pursuit that demands my introspection, and ultimately provides new visualizations of dynamics I’m feeling or experiencing. Right now, that has to do with motherhood, paradox, chaos, and entanglement.  I guess I hope it is also somehow helpful for other people too, on their own journeys, you know, as their lives unfold, and they process it all to similarly understand something larger about our world.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

Probably, if I were to truly cull it down, I think my mission for my creative journey is to just understand better. I like to visualize complexity and inherent juxtaposition, and I also like to hold up beauty itself as a sort of primary truth. My desire, ultimately, is to form experienced dynamics into paintings, and then to let them stand long enough to be really considered or absorbed.  

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

Contact Info:

• Website: www.jennabd.com

Image Credits
Image credits: Vanessa Cerday Photography