Jessie
Renew
Renew
ARTIST STATEMENT
I am currently making pieces that I call ‘Retrofits.’ Retro, because they are made of things from the past. In the spirit of collage, all of my ‘raw’ materials (or free stuff) already have past lives and complex souls. Fits, because my process is less like making a painting, and more like putting an outfit together - its all about color, proportion, layers, and accessories. My aesthetic is simply: too much is not enough. I collect the free stuff from anywhere unwanted things cohabitate- the trash, free Facebook, thrift stores, dollar stores, store closing sales, etc. After years of this behavior, I have developed a habit of constantly scanning my surroundings for signs of free stuff. I don’t have something particular in mind that I’m looking for, I just register the feelings in my body that attract me to stuff. I live with and reorganize the stuff, and these things start to connect to each other and form visual or conceptual ties. From there, I lean into my intuition, what I find fun, and I magically fuse the free stuff together using inspired methods. This mode of work is so exciting, it is constant trial and error, it pushes me to create new modes of construction every time, and it really has no precedent or established rules. The work fuses my conventional art skill with the crafty expertise I picked up doing maker kits and DIYs throughout my life. My favorite thing is the confidence I feel when jumping feet first into making something I’ve never tried before. I embrace failure, and harness the multitudes it produces. My work is not really about the tension between high and low, it assumes that this type of binary thinking and judgment doesn’t exist. Everything belongs in my artwork - it is a reliquary for unwanted, useless things, they are saved and celebrated.
EXHIBITIONS
2023
Little Windows, Vox Populi, Philadelphia, PA
WTF, Imperfect Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
Summer Show, ReCreate Gallery, Philadelphia, PA
2022
Jessie Renew: Solo Show, Park Circle Gallery, North Charleston, SC
Whale Club, The Good Supply, Pemaquid, ME
Piccolo Spoleto Juried Exhibition, City Gallery, Charleston, SC
North Charleston Arts Fest, City of North Charleston, North Charleston, SC
Big Blade II, Big Blade Press, Charleston, SC
Simple Fest, Lo Fi Brewing, Charleston, SC
GAP Anniversary Show, GAP Gallery, Charleston, SC
Pour House Mural Competition, Charleston Pour House, Charleston, SC
2021
GAP Volume 3, GAP Gallery, Charleston, SC
GAP Volume 5, GAP Gallery, Charleston, SC
Recycled Art Show, Port Royal Sound Foundation, Beaufort, SC
Chalktoberfest, Marietta County Museum of Art, Atlanta, GA
2007
Charleston Visual Arts Club Winter Show, Old City Jail, Charleston, SC
2006
Golden Opportunity, Upper Deck, Charleston, SC
Girls, Girls, Girls, Redux Contemporary Art Center, Charleston, SC
Young Contemporaries, Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art, Charleston, SC
2005
Young Contemporaries, Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art, Charleston, SC
COMMISSIONED PROJECTS
2022
- Hilton Head Elementary Media Center Mural, commissioned by The Town of Hilton Head, Hilton Head, SC
- 11 Beach Trash Collection Basket Stand Murals, commissioned by The Town of Hilton Head, Hilton Head, SC
- Collaborative Installation with Pockets Full of Sunshine, commissioned by Sandbox Children’s Museum, Hilton Head, SC
- ‘Make Art Not War’ illustration for Ukraine Relief fundraiser, commissioned by Pockets Full of Sunshine, Hilton Head, SC
- 11 Beach Trash Collection Basket Stand Murals, commissioned by The Town of Hilton Head, Hilton Head, SC
- Collaborative Installation with Pockets Full of Sunshine, commissioned by Sandbox Children’s Museum, Hilton Head, SC
- ‘Make Art Not War’ illustration for Ukraine Relief fundraiser, commissioned by Pockets Full of Sunshine, Hilton Head, SC
2021
- Crescendo Sidewalk Chalk Mural, commissioned by Town of Hilton Head, Hilton Head, SC
- Oyster Recycling Trailer Mural, commissioned by Outside Foundation, Hilton Head, SC
- Oyster Recycling Trailer Mural, commissioned by Outside Foundation, Hilton Head, SC
2020
- Indoor Painted Mural, commissioned by Move Fitness, Bluffton, SC
- Brewing Process Indoor Mural, commissioned by Hilton Head Brewing Company, Hilton Head, SC
- Sidewalk Chalk Mural, commissioned by Hilton Head Chamber of Commerce, Hilton Head, SC
- Facebook Live Music and Chalk Art Performances, commissioned by Town of Hilton Head, Hilton Head, SC
- Sidewalk Chalk Mural at Firehouse 2, commissioned by Town of Hilton Head, Hilton Head, SC
- Facebook Live Music and Painting Performance, commissioned by BO ART, Hilton Head, SC
- Facebook Live ‘Crafty Hour’ Performance, commissioned by Town of Hilton Head, Hilton Head, SC
- “The Island is Asleep” music video, commissioned by Jevon Daly, Bluffton, SC
- Indoor Painted Mural, commissioned by Move Fitness, Bluffton, SC
- Brewing Process Indoor Mural, commissioned by Hilton Head Brewing Company, Hilton Head, SC
- Sidewalk Chalk Mural, commissioned by Hilton Head Chamber of Commerce, Hilton Head, SC
- Facebook Live Music and Chalk Art Performances, commissioned by Town of Hilton Head, Hilton Head, SC
- Sidewalk Chalk Mural at Firehouse 2, commissioned by Town of Hilton Head, Hilton Head, SC
- Facebook Live Music and Painting Performance, commissioned by BO ART, Hilton Head, SC
- Facebook Live ‘Crafty Hour’ Performance, commissioned by Town of Hilton Head, Hilton Head, SC
- “The Island is Asleep” music video, commissioned by Jevon Daly, Bluffton, SC
2019
- Pope Avenue 450’ Outdoor Mural Printed from Illustrations, commissioned by Town of Hilton Head, Hilton Head, SC
- ‘He Cat and She Crab’ Children’s Book Illustration, commissioned by Jevon Daly, Bluffton, SC
- Crescendo Sidewalk Chalk Mural, commissioned by Town of Hilton Head, Hilton Head, SC
- Pope Avenue 450’ Outdoor Mural Printed from Illustrations, commissioned by Town of Hilton Head, Hilton Head, SC
- ‘He Cat and She Crab’ Children’s Book Illustration, commissioned by Jevon Daly, Bluffton, SC
- Crescendo Sidewalk Chalk Mural, commissioned by Town of Hilton Head, Hilton Head, SC
2018
- ‘He Needs a Chihuahua’ Children’s Book Illustration, commissioned by Jevon Daly, Bluffton, SC
- ‘Hilton Head Happy’ apparel design, commissioned by Go Tri Sports, Hilton Head, SC
- ‘He Needs a Chihuahua’ Children’s Book Illustration, commissioned by Jevon Daly, Bluffton, SC
- ‘Hilton Head Happy’ apparel design, commissioned by Go Tri Sports, Hilton Head, SC
2017
- ‘Summer Moon’ and ‘Lowcountry Boil Christmas Special’ Music Videos, commissioned by Jevon Daly, Bluffton, SC
- ‘Summer Moon’ and ‘Lowcountry Boil Christmas Special’ Music Videos, commissioned by Jevon Daly, Bluffton, SC
2016
- ‘MUDD’, ‘Kieth Richards Just Keep on Livin’, ‘Jump Ya Bones’, and ‘Crickets and Bugs’ Music Videos, commissioned by Jevon Daly, Bluffton, SC
- Chalk Board Mural, commissioned by Affordable Health Care, Bluffton, SC
- ‘MUDD’, ‘Kieth Richards Just Keep on Livin’, ‘Jump Ya Bones’, and ‘Crickets and Bugs’ Music Videos, commissioned by Jevon Daly, Bluffton, SC
- Chalk Board Mural, commissioned by Affordable Health Care, Bluffton, SC