Jennifer Carlson is a painter based in the Tweed Valley, Northern Rivers NSW, and is originally from Sydney. Before turning to painting she spent decades as a hair and makeup artist in the entertainment industry, studied textile design and travelled through India exploring traditional printing techniques. These influences continue to shape the textures and colour in her work.
Her large-scale, abstract gestural paintings are informed by meditation, a practice she has held since her mid-thirties, and by the landscape of the Northern Rivers. Lately her practice has been finding a slower rhythm with more breath and space around each piece. It reflects a stillness she is practising in life as much as in the studio.
Jennifer is influenced by the natural world, particularly the ocean, rivers, animals and sun. Her work also draws on music, vintage textiles, stained glass and the Japanese art of sumi-e.
Three original paintings from Jennifer Carlson’s Hibiscus on the River series are available through Few & Far.
Unapologetic, Joyous and Delight evolved beyond botanical studies into what Jennifer describes as portraits of feminine energy.
“Unapologetic is feminine energy claiming the right to exist exactly as we are. This hibiscus is fully herself without explanation, justification, or compromise. She no longer softens her edges or dims her presence to make others comfortable. Unapologetic doesn’t mean aggressive — it means refusing to shrink. No more accommodating, no more making ourselves smaller. She simply is.”
105 × 133 × 3 cm
$4,500
“Joyous is the celebration of self that needs nothing outside itself to be complete. This hibiscus expresses feminine energy fully, delighting in her own existence without need for external validation. No performance, no audience, no agenda – just pure being. Joyous revels in her own aliveness, her own creativity, her own magnificent ordinary existence. This is joy choosing itself.”
91.5 × 91.5 × 3 cm
$3,500
“Delight is pleasure in our own existence, finding wonder in our own becoming. Feminine energy finally free to delight in itself — playful, sensuous, gloriously present. She doesn’t perform delight for others; she experiences it for herself. Radiant, unashamed, completely at home in her own skin.”
91.5 × 91.5 × 3 cm
$3,500
Few & Far’s Artist in Residence presents original work by Australian women across our stores and website. The Journal introduces the artist behind the work, exploring the experiences and ideas that shape their creative practice.
Jennifer Carlson’s Unapologetic, Delight and Joyous are currently on display at our Bowral store and available to purchase online.
If you are an artist who would like to introduce your work to Few & Far, or would like help with purchasing a piece, please get in touch.
After years spent sourcing and styling furniture and homewares, we believe the most compelling homes are assembled over time – through pieces that carry stories, mark memories and say something about the people who live there. In our journal, we share the objects, people and ideas that shape the Few & Far eye.
