Artist Bio
A native of St. Charles, Illinois, Jan Schmuckal was the kind of kid
always doing some sort of art project, thanks to her very indulgent
parents! She graduated from the University of Illinois in 1986 with a
degree in Industrial Design, and spent the following years as a
designer in the Point-of-Purchase industry. After many years as a
designer, she had an overwhelming desire to start painting again, which
she had not done since high school. She started out in a little
makeshift studio in the corner of her apartment bedroom. At that time,
Jan made a conscious decision to go in an impressionistic direction as
an artist rather than as a realist because it provided a break from the
realistic renderings that she did every day as a designer. To further
hone her technique she pursued an ad-hoc education, taking workshops
and classes from both nationally accredited and local artists. She
entered regional shows, then national shows, placed her work in
galleries, gave painting workshops, (quit her design job!) opened 3
successive art studios, taught art classes... and in 2005, Jan opened
an art gallery in a 112-year-old house in Geneva, Illinois.
What Jan says about her Art...
"The changing light of day and the moods it evokes are the
foundation of all my oil paintings. Each piece usually starts with a
powerful, simple composition, which then evolves into a theme in which
strong light and shadow and deep color are within the primary subject.
Strength, mood and simplicity are my primary intentions. All my
paintings are done Alia Prima, also known as direct painting, which
means; A style of painting where, instead of building colors up with
layers, the painting is done in one session while the paint is still
wet. From the Italian word which literally means at once. I feel that
this style of painting helps my intentions to be succinct within each
painting.
I believe that Art begins with intent. After I have
established my intent, then there are levels of insight about a subject
that I add to the intent. After I establish my intent and some level of
insight, only then can my learned painting skills come into play, and
those are the tools that I use to define my insight and intent.
Painting is very much like writing poetry. A poet can write a barroom
limerick, a haiku, or an epic poem... it all depends on the
intertwining of intent, insight, and skill level. To quote Leonardo Da
Vinci, 'Where the spirit does not work with the hand, there is no art".
