Jaquelyn Mendez - Artist & Gallery Assistant
My work emphasizes an act of slow, considered looking. The environments I paint are composites of actual places and invented spaces. I collect imagery (photographs, drawings, illustrations, etc.) from daily life and my travels, the Internet, and books on art and lifestyle design. The environments and narratives I paint are domestic and public social spaces—cafes, markets, kitchens, living rooms and bathrooms. Through their design and decoration, an inhabitant can get a sense of how they might interact with and move through the space.
Jaquelyn Mendez is an artist based in the Metro NY area. She works primarily in painting and painted installations. She recently exhibited her first solo show, Jaquelyn Mendez: spatial sensibilities, at the Clark Gallery with the Spruce Art Residency in Indiana, PA. Her artwork has been shown in numerous group exhibitions in the NY/NJ region; most recently at The Hallway at Second Street Studio in Troy, The University Art Museum at SUNY Albany, Ann Street Gallery in Newburg, and the Arts Center of the Capital Region. She received a MFA in 2019 from the SUNY University at Albany.
Through observing objects, material surfaces and light quality I try to capture a sense of a place. Often I relate the feeling of a space to other senses like taste, smell, and touch.
My paintings consistently combine geometry with ornamentation. The moments these different types of paint application meet emphasize the sensory impression and physicality of the painted environments. Similar to the way I move my body through a space, I consider how a viewer’s eyes moves “through” my painted spaces, or if they can navigate it at all.
Education
2017 - 2019 SUNY University at Albany, Albany NY — Masters in Fine Arts
2016 - 2017 SUNY University at Albany, Albany NY — Masters in Arts
2010 - 2014 College of Saint Rose, Albany NY — Bachelors in Fine Arts
Awards
2020 The Spruce Art Residency, Indiana, PA — Resident Artist
2018 University Art Museum at SUNY University at Albany, Albany, NY — Milton & Sally Avery Arts Foundation Internship
Solo Exhibitions
2020 Jaquelyn Mendez: spatial sensibilities, The Clark Gallery at The Spruce, Indiana, PA
Group Exhibitions
2021 Show #12, The Hallway at Second Street Studio, Troy, NY.
2020 Show #6.2: Welcome to the Future, The Hallway at Second Street Studio, Troy, NY.
Inaugural Group Exhibition, The Hallway at Second Street Studio, Troy, NY.
2019 MFA Thesis Exhibition, Univeristy Art Museum at SUNY University at Albany , Albany, NY
2018 Rituals & Identity, Ann Street Gallery, Newburg, NY
120 Intercollegiate Regional, Art Center of the Capital Region, Troy, NY
2017 MA Thesis Exhibition, Boor Sculpture Studios at SUNY University at Albany , Albany, NY
2016 Works by Regional Artists, Terra Nova Gallery, Troy, NY.
Visiting Artist Lectures
2020 Lecture/ Presentation, The Spruce, Indiana, PA, February 16.
full resume