‘Where are you looking for’– Jessica Lindblom-Brice Art Exhibition

Whilst working in the Little Beehive Co-Op the other day I had the fantastic idea that with every exhibition showcased there, I would ask the artist a few questions on their work & life.
First up is the extremely talented Jessica Lindblom-Brice (look at her studio space – I loooove it!!)
Her work blows me away. Not only for the pure talent in her drawings but, when you study her work closely some of the pieces are made up of hundreds of dots done with ink pen. For someone as impatient as me – I admire the time and energy in each & every dot!

Without further ado…

What is the inspiration behind your current exhibition “Where are you looking for”?
To start with, the inspiration came mainly from old fact books on nature, like children’s encyclopaedias from the 60′s and 70′s. That’s really how it all started. I started collecting them quite a while back and looking in them made me feel really happy. When I gave it some more thought, I realised that it all had to do with the comforting nostalgia of childhood and I wanted to work with that. I am an admitted sufferer of homesickness and I found it interesting that I could find such comfort in the visual style of the photos and illustrations in these old books.

Which is your favourite piece from the exhibition & why?
It’s hard for me to choose a favourite, because they are all very close to the heart. I spent a long time working on each piece, both mentally and physically.
If I have to choose one though I think my favourite piece is the whale drawing. The piece titled “Where are you looking for”. Maybe because that was the first drawing in this body of work and the one that made me keep going, because I felt like I was onto something. I also like “Gone”, because it has got a lot of blackness in it. Like life itself.
I like all of them.

How do you know when a piece is complete?
That is such a good question! And a hard question.
How do I know when a piece is complete? I have over worked drawings so many times and bitterly regretted it. I think a piece is complete when I feel that all the elements are working together in a good way. When I get the feeling that the image communicates what I am trying to say. That has taken me a lot of practice though.

What do love most about being an artist?
That I get to draw. I just love to draw.
The bonus being, of course, that sometimes other people enjoy my work too. It’s incredibly satisfying when the feedback I get on my work tells me that I actually managed to express my thoughts visually. I do not, however, believe that that is my main purpose when I do a drawing. That others need to understand me “correctly”. There is no right or wrong way to read my work. Either it makes you feel something or it doesn’t. If it does, that’s great.

What is your dream creative project?
To do something on a big scale! Like maybe a mural or something like that. I would love to do a collaboration with another artist, someone that works differently from me. That would be really challenging and I would be really interested in what could happen along the way.

What tip would you give an up and coming artist?
To stick to your guns! Listen to others, be inspired, but stay true to what you love and who you are. Find your own ways and don’t be intimidated by other artist’s work, instead be inspired!
And work hard. Don’t give up. I realise it all sounds like clichés, but I think there is a lot of truth in those things.