Artist Bio
Jahna Rae’s passion for art began in early childhood, first inspired by her father, who was also an artist. Her first memories of creating date back to when she was two years old, covered in paint outside her home in Panama City, Panama.
Inspired by the people and places she traveled to as a kid in a military household, Jahna Rae developed an interest in portraiture and spirituality as she and her artistic practice grew. She attended the Academy of Art University in San Francisco in 2017 where she studied Illustration and learned more about the fundamentals of artmaking. After college Jahna Rae moved to Denver, Colorado where she was selected to participate in her first ever mural festival in 2021, thus officially beginning her career as an artist.
Since 2021, she has participated in numerous group exhibits, curated 3 solo shows, awarded three artist in residence programs and completed over a dozen murals around the state of Colorado. Jahna Rae now lives in Upstate, NY where she continues her art practice from her home studio.
Artist Statement
I create to explore my spirituality and the impact of human interconnectedness on the journey towards healing and understanding. My goal is to bring viewers together and shed light on how people understand themselves in relation to others. My evolution in portrait painting and illustration has allowed me to utilize techniques to visualize topics in connection with self and others through abstract methods.
I’m drawn to bold, bright colors, patterns and sharp contrast. I use a variety of mediums including oil, acrylic, aerosol, and ink to create work that is vibrant and textural. The emotional quality of my pieces gives them an inherent narrative that unfolds throughout the painting process. As I create, I weave together inspiration from poetry, music, spirituality and the stories my community has been vulnerable enough to share with me.
