Jen Herro Paints It as She Sees It

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Photo courtesy Jen Herro

Jen Herro

Jen Herro

Painter Jen Herro has had a long career as an artist and previously a carpenter. She talks about her two careers and how one influenced the other.

How long have you been working in watercolors?

I was always intrigued by watercolor. I did some watercolor in school, but it took me many years before I decided to really explore the medium. I began by teaching myself through book exercises when I visited my family cabin in Minnesota. In the big north woods, I had the time and space to learn techniques and to understand what the medium could do and what I enjoyed painting. I have always loved nature and animals and proceeded to include them in my earliest paintings. I have been actively painting for over 25 years.

Describe your painting style.

My style of painting is realistic. I try to portray my subject as I see it and I observe the details as I draw prior to adding paint. I look as deeply as I am able and think details make paintings more interesting. I understand most artists do not paint this way, but it is my personality that comes through. My challenge is to make my subject matter as close to photographic as I am able. I feel this is essential to success in my commissioned pet portraits and house portraits. I enjoy painting in the micro, you might say!

What is your process or method of working?

My method for painting begins with a photograph and inspiration. I employ quite a lot of glazing in my work but also use wet-in-wet and dry brush techniques. In my backgrounds I will often have a looser vibe but again, detail is important to me and the main subject is always portrayed photographically.

Do you sell your art?

I sell my work at summer art fairs and through commission work. I have sold pieces from shows I’ve attended and through gallery hangings. I have also sold work on social media.

Do you paint on site, or from photographs and other references?

I am a huge gardener and passionate about my native gardens. I paint from photographs taken on my walks in Minnesota and my five-acre property. My love of birds, butterflies, moths and flora constantly inform my work. 

A few years ago, I built a trap out of a five-gallon bucket to capture moths during the night. Before sunrise I opened the trap and placed the most interesting moths in glass jars, storing them in the refrigerator (this does not harm them). At sunrise I took them outside to photograph them on matboards. All of my moths warmed and flew away, but I began to understand I was changing their life cycle as some of them only live a few days.  I was able to get hundreds of photographs the summer I did this, so I decided not to continue trapping them. It was a lot of fun and I certainly now appreciate how beautiful moths are! I watch butterflies in my native gardens and find lost bird feathers as subject matter. A friend of mine in Michigan supplies me with amazing bird photographs to use as reference material.

Has your carpentry career influenced your painting technique?

I would say being a journeyman carpenter and working in my trade for 35 years definitely plays a role in my art. I am retired now but I feel I had high standards in my building trade, and I believe it is my attention to detail that my clients appreciated.  When I paint house portraits, I certainly understand how structures are constructed and use my skills as they relate to perspective.   

What can you tell aspiring painters?

I would say to beginners it’s really about brush time. Nothing substitutes time spent painting. Join art groups, enroll in open studios and immerse yourself in whatever art you find inspiring and fulfilling. Creating art with friends is a wonderful way to move forward with learning and watching others is instructive in itself. Art is not necessarily about the outcome but rather the process of filling the soul. I did not begin painting thinking I would sell it; it just evolved. It is the greatest joy when others connect with something you’ve created even more than any monetary reward.