About the Artist

Picture
2012.
     Relatively new to Indiana, I was born in the Middle East and lived overseas in Southeast Asia until I moved to Texas with my family when I was fifteen years old. After finishing high school and college in Texas I worked in upstate New York, and Austin, Texas before embarking on a two-year contract to teach art at an international school in China. In July of 2011, I moved to Indianapolis to teach art at the International School of Indiana and since then I have enjoyed the process of synthesizing all of my local and overseas experiences into my artwork. I enjoy combining visual elements that I’ve adopted from my time living and traveling overseas with American folk art traditions. The aesthetics of Bali, Africa, Tibet, Mexico, India and Thailand are reoccurring visual themes in my work, especially motifs that involve animal symbolism, mask design, and death rituals. In my latest series of work, ‘The Secret Kingdom’, I’ve combined relief wood and linoleum carving with traditional acrylic painting to create richly, multi-textured pieces that attempt to capture snapshots of the folklore of various cultures. In my mind, I imagine a spectacular Kingdom where all of the characters you see in my work would live and interact together seamlessly, embracing their differences and reveling in the unique qualities they each bring to their fantastical world.  
 

Biography:
  • Born in Dubai, UAE in 1981. 
  • Currently residing in Indianapolis, Indiana. 
  • Attended Singapore American School in Singapore for four years. 
  • Attended Jakarta International School in Jakarta, Indonesia for six years. 
  • Attended Taylor High School in Katy, Texas for three years. 
  • Graduated from Texas State University in San Marcos, Texas in 2003 with a BFA in Fine Arts and a K-12 art education teaching credential.
  • Practicing art teacher for ten years in New York, Texas, Southern China, and Indiana.  
  • Popular mediums: Acrylic, oil, relief printmaking, relief wood carving, plaster sculpture, and photography. 
  • Major influences: The cultural arts of Thailand, Indonesia, India, Africa, and Tibet. 
  • Additional websites:  
  • Art Education site at www.jennytiefelarted.com


Exhibitions:
  • Selected paintings and drawings on exibit at Mafrella's Bar in Houston, TX, 2002.
  • Group Show at Southwest Texas State University, May 2003.
  • Mural for the set of TV pilot 'The Poodle Dog Lounge' , Austin, TX,  2006.
  • Group Show for the Taylor Artists Society, 2007.
  • Solo Show at the Blue Marble Java Cafe in Pflugerville, TX, 2008. 
  • Painting donation for the 'Seng Girl's Home Auction' in Shenzhen, China, 2010.
  • Solo Show at Aulon Wine Bar, Shekou, China, 2011.
  • Solo Show at the Indy Hostel Gallery, Indianapolis, IN, USA, 2012.

Please enjoy the site and the art, if you have any questions, become interested in a particular work that's available, or find yourself interested in commissioning a piece you can contact me through email at: jennytiefel@gmail.com