Featured Artist Reception with Jean Bradley

The Desert Art Center will host a reception for featured artist, Jean Bradley. It will be held in the Small Gallery and complimentary refreshments will be served.

Jean Bradley is a well- known portrait and landscape painter. She is a DAC instructor and also hosts private art lessons.

Her large, colorful acrylic paintings of tropical flora and animals command attention.

“People often comment, in viewing my work, that they feel the life force, the energy in the vibrant color and movement,” Jean writes on her website. “It’s my expression of the magic in nature.”

Jean was born in Duluth, Minnesota, and knew by age 6 that she was going to be an artist. She studied under various art teachers for a number of years. Upon retiring, one artist donated all of her art books to Jean, realizing that she had potential for success as an artist.

Classically trained in traditional portraiture, Jean uses that base to explore and translates an emotional response to the human face. She was asked to paint portraits the four NBC television, “The Today Show,” including Katie Couric, Ann Curry, Al Roker and Matt Lauer.

Using the techniques of a wide color palette and free-form brush strokes, Jean seeks to “mine” the nuances of a face, the window to the soul.

Her portrait models can be anyone that she finds interesting, from friends to the coffee barista working behind the counter.

“I choose the models for many reasons. Some might have a ‘vintage’ look or something timeless about them,” Jean says on her website. “Whatever it is, I want to know more about them.”

Once someone agrees to pose, Jean photographs them in various positions, always conscious of the light and shadows. Striking a strong contrast is vital to her work, and spends time editing and cropping the photographs. Then color theory is applied to enhance the overall mood and composition.

She adds, “Choosing the right scale is important to the essence of the image.”

Her biggest accomplishment and highest honor to date is when her artwork was chosen for the cover of “International Artist Magazine,” including a 10-page article concerning her work.

For this First Friday show, Jean will unveil a new series of “color, movement and rhythm.” There will be portraits of everyday people, tropical plants, koi fish and sky landscapes.

www.kauaiart.com