Hip Chick Designs: Jennifer Perimutter Interview

I met Jennifer at Hip Chick Designs one fine day a while back and liked her instantly. She is such a sweet, warm woman and talented to boot. I admire her style, color palette and expressive abstract nature of her work. Here is a bio bite along with an example of her work....

About

Jennifer Perlmutter: Artist. Contemporary Art | Abstract Expressionism | Mixed Media Abstract

Biography

Working in abstract expressionism for 15 years, Jennifer Perlmutter creates contemporary art using mixed media on wood and canvas. Her artwork is distinguished by complex layers and a push-pull of color, figure and texture. Jennifer’s fine art has been featured on film & television and currently hangs in The Mirage in Las Vegas, Traum Haus in Seoul, S. Korea, and Toronto’s Casino Niagara.

Jennifer lives and works in San Francisco’s East Bay.

5 Artist Questions for Jennifer Perimutter

How long have you been making art?

I have been making art since about 1997. My entry into art was through film and television creating props and transforming ordinary lumber into scenery. From Dusk Til Dawn, Quentin Tarantino's cult classic gave me the great training in paint and effects. I was in heaven and learning from some very talented artists. But I wanted to work in the real world where the things I made could be felt and seen in person. So from there I went into furniture design. I took a series of classes at UCLA in Furniture making. Afterwards I started working for a high end furniture painter, learning hand painting techniques in oil and water media on antique reproduction furniture. In 2000 I opened my own furniture painting and design studio. I began painting on wood and scrap to test materials and techniques, turning the traditional designs in to contemporary abstracts. These paintings, hanging in our furniture studio, caught the eye of our interior design clients and started to sell. After we had our son, we down-sized and my passion for paint moved from design onto the canvas.

How long did it take for you to find your unique style?

The unique style in my paintings is still developing and hopefully always will. This is cultivated over time and changes and course corrects every day. When I look back at hundreds of paintings I do see a common thread. This thread or "unique style" has a lot to do with the surface, texture and warm colors of the paintings. Collage was added in 2010 and I am still very interested in using collage in my paintings.

Do you consider yourself successful?

Yes, I consider myself successful but I do not feel like "success" is a destination. Success is showing up to the canvas, listening earnestly, responding to what matters and letting go of the rest. I have sold hundreds of paintings over the last 12 years, my images have been licensed to tapestry, posters and limited editions, commissions, TEDx talk, yada, yada... Painting and sharing the paintings, repeat this process for Success.

Where do you get your ideas?

The ideas for my paintings are always coming at me from music, memories, dreams, nature, feelings and impressions of people. I think very visually. It is very easy for me to imagine the colors of emotions and memories. Even friendships can be described with texture and color. So when I am painting, I tune into my heart and feel the colors and textures that I want to express. Sometime there are problems to resolve, sometimes there are things to celebrate.

Do you have a loud critic at your back, if so how do you manage it?

Generally I would not say I have a loud critic at my back when it comes to painting. I don't think of something outside of myself that feeds me negativity. It's just me. I taught myself that the painting is, "on it's way." In other words, chill out and let the painting develop. If I don't like it, it is not finished.