I am a Montreal-based artist whose painting practice has developed over many years, shaped by a long, layered sense of belonging rooted in Quebec’s Eastern Townships across both English and French generations. My work Universal Danseuse emerged through an ekphrastic process created in collaboration with the McGill Poetry Matters collective, where poetry becomes an abstract visual experience rather than literal illustration. It embodies emotional sensation through material abstraction, drawing from a deeply personal resonance. It is a visceral presence of taste, memory, landscape, and emotional texture. That lived, physical response became central to the development of the ice abstracts. I continue to evolve through independent exhibitions and collaborations, including a 2021 Artist Residency at Kin Experience and more recent work such as Summer Ice Storm at Métèque Art Gallery, which reflects an ongoing engagement with natural processes. Universal Danseuse was also included in Abstractions, presented by the University Club of Montreal. I remain committed to exploring the intersection of abstraction, poetry, and states of presence within contemporary painting.
Artistic Process Over the past 25 years, my artistic practice has been a continuous journey of exploration and experimentation. It was only through a recent analytical study of my work that a unified underlying core emerged: my process is fundamentally about controlling uncertainty, discovering meaning and truth within disruption. This evolution began with the abstract reflections of my cityscapes, where structured urban environments dissolved into fluid light and shadow. Driven to dive deeper into the dialogue between order and chance, I began incorporating physical elements of nature into the medium itself. By allowing melting ice and oil paint to interact in real time, I surrendered a degree of control to natural forces. This dynamic collaboration between organic randomness and deliberate artistic intent naturally expanded into a conceptual exploration of icebergs and their connection to human presence, vulnerability, and endurance. Today, this ongoing study has culminated in a dynamic new series grounded in automatic drawing. By introducing immediate, subconscious disruption onto the canvas, I build layered compositions that tap into deeply held memories, capturing the rhythm of music, the nostalgia of time, and the permanence of motion. Across every style of my work, each piece remains a physical record of balance: navigating unpredictable chaos to unearth clarity, emotional resonance, and truth.
Universal danseuse
40" x 48"
(101.6 x 121.92 cm)
mixed media on canvas
2024
Kevin Jenne
