Pogo Cafe

Blog

Exhibition at Pogo by Jade Eastley

Jade Eastley Studied BA Art and psychology at the University of Reading. Currently in my final year of studying an MA in Art Therapy

My art has been changing and going through different stages in recent months. Therefore I cannot pinpoint one particular artistic style or reason for creating. I believe this is due to the nature of my current course, art therapy. My purpose for doing art has changed – I used to make art for the audience and because I had certain concept or message that I wanted to convey. I am now going with what I feel. So when I start to make art I don’t necessarily know what is going to happen or what will come out because I don’t often have any preconceived ideas. I am just going on the journey and learning to tolerate the uncertainty.

The majority of this work is acrylic paintings of the bodhisattva Tara (e.g. figure 1). I found painting her very meditative; being mindful with every stroke, visualising her in my minds eye and contemplating her strengths. Other images are quickly constructed and more immediate – things I wanted to get out, onto paper quickly to let go or consider . Sometimes I find myself thinking too much or trying too hard to analyse, one can feel frustrated and stuck. At these times I have found painting to music to be helpful, to just be present with the fluctuations of the music (Figure 3, Beethoven sonata no.7). Just recently I have started to become more interested in the earth and the nature around me (figure 4) and this is the direction my work is going in now.