Page 24 - the NOISE July 2014

At Home In DIcHotomy:
anatomy of an artist
by SArAH GIAnellI
It’s as common today to divide artists from their more analytical counterparts as it is to draw a line between the left and right hemispheres of the brain. But prior to the Copernican Revolution, in more holistic times, it was well understood that the most inventive thinkers had both highly function- ing intellects and imaginations, and that it was the combination of the two that came together in the true genius.
Enter Jessica Laurel Reese, one of the newest additions to a community made up of thinkers and makers, and a shining exam- ple of someone equipped to do both, and who does — to the extreme.
I knew Ms. Reese hosted Shrinky Dink par- ties, where she made jewelry out of the baked and hardened plastic and showed her pieces in Jerome’s Epiphyte Gallery. Cut into the shapes of detailed anatomical drawings — hearts, rib cages, fibulae and tibiae, skulls and the like — she calls her line Anatology
— a portmanteau of the words “anatomy” (the study of bodily structure) and “histology” (the study of microscopic human tissues).
As July’s featured artist at Epiphyte Gal- lery, Ms. Reese will be adding pencil and ink drawings to her jewelry display, ranging from intimately rendered nude figures (a longtime favorite practice that she contin- ues to hone at Jerome’s weekly live drawing sessions in the Old High School) that capture the majesty of the human form, to highly de- tailed depictions of the cellular structure of the human organism.
“I’ve always been fascinated by the human figure — in art school I took figure drawing every single semester even if I had to au- dit,” she says. “It’s one of the most dynamic, expressive things that exists on the planet. People can manipulate their bodies in so many beautiful ways, and I love representing it creatively. I’ve also always been drawn to the beauty of the micro,” she says. “The level we can’t see with the naked eye and how it correlates to the macro; and the similarities between the two. While taking my prereq- uisites for nursing school, my microbiology class just rocked my socks and transferred my work into the representation of biology.”
But art came first — nurtured from childhood by her mother, a successful jew- eler known for her intaglio wedding bands (which are actually sold in Jerome at Nellie
Bly II), and many years of art school begin- ning at the College of Marin, and then Cali- fornia College of the Arts in Oakland, where her focus was sculpture.
It seems every time I get together with Ms. Reese she pulls out another mind-blowing example of her versatile creativity — from bound books of poetry she wrote in high school (to the slam poetry she wrote and performed while active in that scene), to high art jewelry, three dimensional welded sculptures of the human form, a steel gui- tar made from scratch, and a seven foot tall installation called Only in Stillness is there Silence, which used computer software pro- grams (for which Ms. Reese wrote the code) that assigned pitches to changes in light fre- quencies based on the movement of a series of pendulums.
I wondered how the smaller, two-dimen- sional jewelry and drawings she’s producing today could possibly satisfy such an obvi- ously bountiful creative impulse. The answer is, it doesn’t entirely — but, as a fulltime nursing student at Yavapai College, and now with a demanding fulltime career in her field, at least it provides some outlet, albeit like a river trying to flow through a pinhole.
“People are thrown by the idea that I’m a nurse and artist,” she says. To me, it makes sense because that’s the way that my brain was given to me. I have a knack for the arts and I also have a real right brain connection. I’m good at wacky math; I’m hyper-creative and have the ability to think really abstractly which are very right brain functions — that’s where the artist comes in, where my creativ- ity comes from. But I also have this very left brain side — I’m hyper-organized and re- ally language oriented and can function as a medical professional. I think I’m also natu- rally drawn to the healing arts because I’m a really compassionate human being ... it’s kindoflikeIwasaborntobeanartist,andI was born to be a nurse.”
Ms. Reese works at The Alternative to Med Center in Sedona, a holistic behavioral health facility that assists people trying to get off pharmaceutical drugs, mostly of the psychiatric variety. As the medical liaison between the head doctor and the patients, and the primary nurse on the medical team, Ms. Reese manages the patients’ day to day care, and advocates for medication changes
and physiological needs, a position that re- quires a comprehensive working knowledge of conventional Western medicine and natu- ropathy.
“We support their bodies with high doses of supplements, amino acids, and vitamins and minerals, and correct their physiology so their neurochemistry balances,” explains Ms. Reese. “So they don’t have to depend on the medication they were prescribed.”
After art school, a little burnt out and knowing it would be a near impossibility to survive in San Francisco solely on her art, and wanting to earn a sustainable income (there’s that practical left brain stepping in), Ms. Reese got a job with a nonprofit assisting developmentally disabled adults. Not only did she realize that she was good at it, but found that it satisfied a humanitarian need that art-making did not.
“I need the altruistic side ... I need to be do- ing something good for people,” she says. “I get depressed when I’m not doing work that is really meaningful. I feel most rewarded by nursing — it’s service to fellow mankind. Being an artist is equally important, but it’s more a service to myself.”
Ms. Reese also found that she relies on many of the same faculties in nursing that come into play when making art.
“Nursing requires a lot of belief in your intu- ition,” she says. “And the creation of artwork is very much following one’s intuition — con- necting to source, and following what feels good and what you sense is right. That’s a really prominent part of nursing — to assess people and get a sense for what’s going on. Also, as nurses, we have to think critically and come up with creative solutions to problems, and be really broad in our thinking and look at the whole picture. When you’re painting a picture, you’re right on top of it doing little details with small brushstrokes and then you have step back and take the whole picture into account. And that’s a lot of what nurs- ing is — being mindful of the larger picture while you’re focusing on the details.”
Ms. Reese does admit there is a pretty clear split between her two worlds. When she gets off work, she can be her casual, free-spirited artistic self. But as a nurse, she has to oper- ate from a professional place, utilize her edu- cation, and remain aware of what aspects of her personality to express. But while it might
not be the same person people meet when she’s on “art duty,” it is an equally authentic part of Ms. Reese that needs its own fulfilling.
“There’s a total duality in who I am,” she says. “But they both shine honest facets of who I am; they just speak to different fasci- nations. As a multifaceted, multidimensional, multitalented and multi-interested woman, I find balance in shining all of my qualities, and it’s a blessing to myself to honor all of them. It’s the yin and the yang, and sound balance can be found in the extremes. If you put weights on the ends of a teeter totter, no matter how long it is, it’s going to stay level.”
Ms. Reese’s art work can be found at Epi- phyte Studio & Gallery, 511 Main Street in Jerome. 928-639-9523. The gallery and the artist can also be found on Facebook.
Anything goEs
The Jerome Artists Cooperative Gallery presents their Biannual Membership Show called “Anything Goes!” in which the 33 members of the co-op have the opportunity to show artwork outside of their typical me- diums. Victoria Norton, known to visitors of the gallery as a ceramic artist, will show her talent for book making. “I’ve been a cal- ligrapher and book maker for as long as I’ve been a ceramic artist,” says Ms. Norton. “It’s my other creative path and what keeps my crea,tive wheels turning.”
Chris Ryback, who was juried into the co-op for her handmade purses, and cement garden and wall art sculptures, will show award-winning, published photographs she took during an excursion to Egypt.
Mary Jardine, known in the gallery for her fabric collages work, will display a ce- ramic mask made out of clay and recycled fibers many years ago. The fibers having all but disintegrated after being in her garden for a decade, Ms. Jardine has refurbished the piece specifically for this show.
“Anything Goes!” opens July 5th during First Saturday ArtWalk from 5-8PM and runs through July 30. The Jerome Artists’ Coop- erative Gallery is open daily from 10AM-6PM at 502 N. Main Street. jeromecoop.com
| sarah gianelli is a fan of EZ Bake. arts@thenoise.us
24 • JULY 2014 • the NOISE arts & news • thenoise.us