about
Jess Hazell is a self taught painter from Queensland, Australia. She focuses on oil paintings that illustrate feminine energy, a connection to nature and showing the ordinary as extraordinary.
After focusing on a huge body of work that centered around female empowerment, body neutrality and self ;love, Jess has extended this emphasis on individuality to encompass more components of everyday life that lend us moments of peace and beauty. Working to visualise the charm and allure of the mundane and simplistic, Jess creates paintings that speak to our collective need for mindfulness.
Jess has had numerous exhibitions across London and recently has exhibited her work in shows in Prague and Athens.
artist statement
My work stems from feminine empowerment. Conjuring conversations surrounding sexuality, self-love, body positivity, trauma and a personal erotic relationship; I try to embody as much emotion within a vibrant colour palette and isolation of body parts. My work is usually against a white background to ensure the boldness of the figure is not distracted. I primarily work with oils as the texture is softer and allows for more layering, which lets me implement more depth of colour and emotion.
I look at a body like I look at a landscape. Tracing the contours of the skin like you follow the horizon through mountain ranges. It has so much depth and beauty that you can't help but feel safe and in love. It's powerful and unapologetic because it's unique, just like our bodies. I believe in a strong cultivation of self, essence over identity and a powerful soul. We are more than just a vessel, we are an entity that cannot be limited or constrained.
Women are dealt a hard deck of cards when it comes to beauty standards. We constantly strive to hit that target of perfection that just doesn't exist because we look to what society's version of that is. Beauty is not a written rule book, it's not defined by an almighty image or routine. Beauty is dirty, weird and sometimes unattractive. Settling into who you are and feeling sexy, even in the most unsexy of moments is BEAUTIFUL. That's what I'm trying to portray.