Carrie M. Jadus was born in Tampa, Florida. At the age of 5 her family moved across the bay to St. Petersburg. Encouraged by an ancestry of artists and a supportive family, Jadus acknowledged her aspiration at an early age. As a teen, she attended Pinellas County Center for the Arts (PCCA) at Gibbs High School where she honed her skills and trained herself to work in a variety of mediums. Inspired by adventure, Jadus journeyed to Europe after graduation and discovered a passionate fascination with Impressionism.
Upon her return, she took an unexpected turn and studied Electrical Engineering, earning her Bachelor’s of Science from the University of South Florida. She continued working as an engineer for several years before the awareness that her career, although it provided a steady income and stability for her & her family, was not setting well with her heart.
Unable to shake the uncertainty of her position, Jadus decided to abandon the life of an engineer and to put all efforts into her true calling: Fine Arts. She has since thrived as an artist and has completely dedicated herself to her skills. While Jadus is a Tampa Bay Artist, her work is exhibited in galleries and private collections all over the world.
Artist Statement
A painting is an account of life, a narrative. It embodies the slow heat rising off the pavements, the watery reflections of the universe, and the shaky essence of a soul. As an artist I manifest these truths in my art, and I aim to ignite the imagination of others with the reflections of the physical world.
My use of Impressionism stems from a post-collegiate jaunt to Europe where I finally understood the relaxed, snapshot-like momentary occurrence of a sunset or facial expression. It inspired me to express the shards of reality like the transient light over the ocean or the candid heartbeat of the city streets. Similar to an extension of my arm, the paintbrush flows as effortlessly as the colors in a warm summer current in the Gulf.
A finished piece is the artistic equivalent to a solved equation—suddenly it’s clear and coherent on the canvas before me. All the colors and forms come together in a gradual but clear impression.
Though the painting is of importance to me, it is crucial for the viewer to distinguish their own significance in relation to the image. Therein lies my hope, for those who observe my work to experience their own visual anecdote.
Interview:
The Artisan: What is your primary/favorite medium and, what others do you work with?
Carrie Jadus (CJ): I have worked in several mediums, but my true passion is painting in oils. I am just in love with the rich colors of the paint, their consistency, the smell and how they look on different surfaces.
When you made the jump to full-time, professional artist what was going on inside you? Psychologically and emotionally?
CJ: I had always felt like an artist on the inside from childhood. When I decided to make the transition into becoming an artist full time, I had absolutely no idea how hard it would be to become established and make a living. Psychologically, I was determined to make it work and making ends meet financially was the hardest part (especially when my kids were little). I had to be creative in how I incorporated the kids into the activities/shows that I participated in. I learned to have humility and to ask for trades when I needed it. For example, I was blessed enough to find a dentist that was willing to trade artwork in return for dental care for my kids. I also did a lot of portraits and commissions to pay the bills. The portrait above is of my kids that I painted as a sample to help get clients. The first 5 years as a full-time artist taught me to have discipline and tighten my belt. After I became more well-known and collectable, things became easier, and I am happy that I made the choice to pursue an art career.
Are you spiritual? Do you maintain a belief system? Does this get reflected in your art?
CJ: I was raised in the Roman Catholic church when I was young, but as my parents would say “It didn’t stick”. I think that whole experience dissuaded me from any kind of church as an adult, but aspects of it probably pop up in my work here and there. Being fully committed to a single idea or belief system about ‘life and death’ seems a bit limiting – so I entertain the plausibility of most belief systems. After personally experiencing the ability to change my circumstances by shifting my perception, the metaphysical belief about the outer ‘physical’ realm being shaped by the ‘inner’ thoughts and beliefs is something I can relate to. ‘As within so without’ is a concept that threads itself through most religions and even has psychological explanations and so that theme tends to pop up in my work.
In your Artist Statement you say you want viewers of your work to “distinguish their own significance to the image”. Are you trying to make a “statement” or have meaning or intentions of your own in your art that you want to convey to viewers? What might that be?
CJ: I avoid preaching or a targeted message in my paintings. People are forever evolving throughout their life, and they are going to see what they want to see. My perspective and beliefs change and evolve, and I will probably feel differently about something 10 years from now. I paint what creates an emotional response in me and it tends to also do so in others, but not always in the same way. They act more as a Rorschach than intended messages.
Technically speaking, what makes an artist an artist? In your mind, does an artist have to have training and education to be considered serious?
CJ: I feel like the body of work that an artist builds over time speaks for itself and showcases mastery. I wouldn’t trust someone to paint a giant mural on my building unless I saw their portfolio, evewwn if they had a master’s degree. I think training is a great way to hone skills and I respect those who have devoted the time and money to develop and learn as much as possible. However, I don’t believe that you necessarily must be ‘trained’ to be considered an artist. In my opinion, someone who is constantly creating and practicing their craft is more of an artist than someone that was trained, but rarely creates.
When you’re at your finest; motivated, creative, in-tune, in-the-moment, …..what moves you?
CJ: I am inspired by a multitude of experiences and people around me, but one really weird phenomenon that I have noticed in my life – is that I have painted my best work when I am really, really mad about something. I still don’t completely understand it and I am curious if other artists experience this. I think it’s because when I’m incredibly mad, I have a lot of pent-up energy and I kinda let go of all expectations and just stay in my studio until I’m exhausted. I feel that there are other times when everything is flowing, but there is just something unique that comes out in the ‘mad” work… lol.
Does an artist, or should an artist stay within a certain recognizable STYLE to be recognized and appreciated? Is that not limiting to the artist?
CJ: Yes, I think it is true that artists become more well known when they have a recognizable style, but most artists have an evolution because who wants to paint the same way all the time and forever? From experience, changing style too dramatically can turn off your collector base that likes your current style and make things more difficult financially. It seems to take a little time for patrons to adjust to a totally different style or for new patrons that are more receptive to different work to accumulate. When I first started painting, I established about four different veins of paintings. It was like having four personalities and I think it was my way of surviving and getting as many patrons as I could in my lean years. I did local impressionistic cityscapes, portraits, figurative and illustrative. I always thought I would settle on one, but I guess I am still painting within those veins today.
What might you suggest to our art or government organizations that you feel may be helpful to local artists?
CJ: St Petersburg touts itself as a “Top Arts and Cultural Destination” and I think if the city wants to earn this moniker, they should at least have a city cultural affairs staff member that lives here in St Petersburg. A local city cultural affairs person can engage and meet with local artists and cultural organizations to identify issues and help find solutions. The biggest increasing issue now is lack of affordable housing and studio space for creatives. Already some of St Pete’s most influential artists have left in pursuit of more affordable space and many more are not far behind. I think the arts organizations and the city government should work together quickly to develop sustainable conditions for artists and smaller arts organizations or they will lose them. I am a big supporter of the Warehouse Arts District Association (WADA) because it provides opportunities as well as subsidized space for artists. My Studio is located at the ‘ArtsXchange’ campus at the corner of 5th Ave S and 22nd Street which is a 4-Acre warehouse complex. This campus was purchased by WADA in 2014 using grants and donations, and already is home to subsidized creative studio spaces, as well as a community dance floor, music venue, classroom spaces and plans for much more.
How many pieces of art do you think you create in a year, average? How has that changed over the past 10 years? Do you sell them all?
CJ: I probably create around 200-300 pieces of art a year now depending on the projects I have going on. About a third of them are sacrificial – meaning they are practice, or experiments & they get painted over, destroyed, or archived. I am not sure if those ‘practice’ or ‘experimental’ pieces count, but I think they should. The rest are commissions or pieces I sell in a Gallery. If a piece doesn’t sell for a year or two then it becomes part of the sacrificial group. When I first started painting, I maybe only made 50 works in a year. I was much slower back then because I did not have as much mastery over the medium and I wanted every single painting I made to sell. Essentially, I was afraid of making mistakes or producing something “bad” and so I would work a piece to death for hours more than I should have. Finally, I started to realize that it is more effective for me to produce 100 paintings and destroy half of them (the ones that don’t make the cut) than to sit at the easel and struggle to make 50 perfect paintings.
Do you ever feel like you have burned out your creative candle? How do you push through that?
CJ: Yes, that is something I guess artists who depend on art sales for income must prepare for. Because it does happen, and my way of coping is to just step back for a week or so and find something else completely different to do. Pretty soon, I am itching to get back to it. I had a kind of a long bout of that during the pandemic where I just had to really force myself to be in the studio and allow myself to make whatever felt good until the desire kicked back in.
Do you feel that being married to another creative, (Mark Aeling), is beneficial to your creativity? How often do you work together on projects?
CJ: Yes, I love being married to an artist. I feel like I have found the perfect partner because we can bounce ideas off each other and we both have formulated good boundaries regarding our work and family life. Sometimes we work together if the opportunity arises, but we both have our own way of working that is very different, so we stay in our own lane most of the time. (Collaborative wall sculpture, see above).
How do you think art brings us together as human beings?
CJ: I believe there’s a need for humans to process emotions without the confines of language. That’s why creating, watching, or listening to art can be such an emotional relief and so personal.
Who are your biggest artistic influences?
CJ: I love Winslow Homer because he is a masterful painter and storyteller. I grew up in Florida and we did a lot of camping and fishing, so I resonate with his Florida series. I also really admire Egon Sheile’s ability to capture the figure in a way that is not perfect, but beautiful in all its imperfections and darkness.
What shows are you participating in this year?
CJ: I am in the process of preparing for the 3rd “Blue Nudes” solo show at Soft Water Gallery consisting of all new figurative works. The opening will be Thursday September 8, 6-9pm and it will remain up for the month of September. The Gallery has just been newly renovated and effective after September 8 will also have regular gallery hours of Thursday through Saturday 12 – 6pm. Soft Water Gallery is located at 515 22nd Street S., Unit F, at the Arts Xchange.
How can people contact you?
CJ: You can go to my website at www.carriejadus.com and fill out a contact form or via email at [email protected]. I love to meet people in person during my ‘open studio’ which is every ArtWalk on the Second Saturday of the month from 5-9pm •
