Alabama Maker Jane Philips uses coffee to perk up eye-opening art
Jane Philips finds her art therapeutic and expressive. (Brittany Dunn / Alabama NewsCenter)
Jane Philips Studio (Huntsville)
The Maker: Jane Philips
Jane Philips draws from the darkness of her anxiety and depression to create the brightness that is her artwork.
For Philips, a mixed-media artist, there is a healing component to painting. It’s also empathetic as she tends to focus more on women as her centerpieces, telling the female story.
“Most of my figures are very realistic,” Philips said. “I try to express bodies with integrity and to highlight parts of the body that most people are ashamed of and make them beautiful.”
Jane Philips Studio is an Alabama Maker expressing emotions through art from Alabama NewsCenter on Vimeo.
Philips started as a teen making charcoal portrait drawings. A teacher exposed Philips to one of her favorite materials: coffee. She loves the amber, organic hue it brings to her work.
“It brews onto it, and it gives a beautiful glowing amber look to it that I really love,” Philips said.
Taking inspiration from her models is how Philips gets her own inspiration. She enjoys sitting down with her customers during consultations to see how they want to be portrayed as well as how her style can fit into the portrait.
The Jane Philips Studio is at the Lowe Mill ARTS and Entertainment space in Huntsville. She recently won the People’s Choice Award at the Huntsville Museum of Art’s 2017 Red Clay Survey.
“Recognition from my peers is really important to me,” Philips said.
The product: Original artwork.
Take home: Fine art prints ($15- $45).
Jane Philips Studio can be found online and on Facebook and Instagram.
