artdogspot.com » Jackie Felix

June 26th, 2009 // by Ellen Ryan

Jackie Felix is an artist whose works I have admired for quite sometime. She draws and paints (primarily figuratively) and, in spite of personal obstacles, has been a working artist her entire life. Her work always feels fresh, socially relevant. And while unflinching in thematic content, it can be subtle in it’s execution and depiction of contemporary and sometimes difficult subject matter.

But my admiration for her extends far beyond her artwork. She is not only an uncompromising artist, she is a brave woman with a fearless intellectual spirit. Speaking with her is always a pleasure for me because no matter the original reason for the conversation, the exchange invariably meanders into thought provoking and fascinating territory. These conversations are almost always about art but refreshingly within the context of being a conscious human or citizen of the world. Jackie in studio Often, politics, religion and sex come up but in an intellectually comfortable zone. She makes important connections between all these topics and you become hip-deep in these conversations before you even know it. Not surprisingly, this is also how she describes her creative process - that there is always a connecting thread between themes from one body of work to the next. After a conversation with her, I am always grateful because I invariably learn something substantial from this accomplished woman. But above all, I enjoy speaking with her because it is always personal and real.

As a young girl growing up in Pittsburgh, it is more than safe to say she was not encouraged to develop her obvious artistic talents. This was a time when women had few career options. You were encouraged to be a secretary, a nurse or a teacher. Very few women received a college education at that time let alone were encouraged to pursue a career as an artist.

Jackie Felix, Some More Happiness: Winter's End, acrylic & gesso, 2008-2009

As many in her generation, Jackie married and had children but continued to create. After the loss of her first husband in a car accident, she remarried and remains married to her current husband, Al. They both raised their respective children together and it is through the support she received in this relationship, that she was finally able to fully pursue her artistic career.

As with her work, Jackie has become a common “connector” to many within her artistic community. Scratch the surface and you will find that almost everyone knows her or has been influenced or nurtured in one way or another by her. She has been a consistent supporter of the community and has been a great friend to many. But her art work speaks for itself. It somehow unconsciously engages and connects us to the human condition. It speaks to how we interact – or not – with each other and with the contemporary world we inhabit.

We interviewed Jackie earlier this year. You can check out the interview and transcript under our Interview posts.

If you want to see more of her work, go to her website at www.jackie-felix.com.