Janet Roberts

I have been making art in some form for over fifty years, and have run the gamut from impressionistic landscapes to using old paint by number paintings as backgrounds for my new takes in oil. But the thread that has run consistently through all those years of creating, is my love and fascination with the human figure and face. I enjoy using models, but often have been in places where a person–a personality–is so compelling to me that I try and get permission to take a photo, and later to do a painting of the photo. Happily, the excitement I felt at the moment of discovery seems to remain and expand during the painting process. I am always aware that a complex being exists behind the face, and my goal is to create a painting that not only tells a story, but makes a comment on humanity that everyone can relate to.
I attended Indiana University and graduated in 1966 with a degree in Fine Arts. I then lived in, and exhibited in shows and galleries in the Chicago suburbs for 15 years, and later lived for a brief time in London, where I had the honor of being juried into the Royal Academy of Art’s 200th Summer Exhibition.
A return to the states and to the Milwaukee area led me to show my landscapes in the Delind Gallery, as well as the Katie Gingrass Gallery. In 1994 my family moved to Cedar Rapids, Iowa, which proved to be a turning point for my art. My landscapes were put on hold, and I began experimenting with oil and collage. These collages captured my imagination and interest, and I did many while in Iowa. A return to Wisconsin in 1998 led me to begin concentrating on doing figures over vintage wallpaper and fabric, and I still use that technique when the subject calls for it.
I had a lot of fun with a series I called the Hat Portrait Series. Each subject wore a hat they owned, or one from my collections. They were all done on a square 16″X16″ canvas, and were shown in several venues. I now concentrate primarily on the figure/face, and often paint them on a tinted canvas. This has led to commissioned work, which I’m always happy to do, my goal being to show the special and unique qualities of the person depicted.
As a reader and one who enjoys writing, I think in my own way I am creating visual stories with many of my paintings, and my goal is always to do this in a way that brings the figure/subject/person to life.

I first joined WVA (at that time Wisconsin Painters & Sculptors) in 1998, and since that time wrote articles and artist interviews for the newsletter; worked on the Biennial committees from 2002 to 2007; co-chaired two Biennials with Gary Gresl, helping to select jurors and sites; was Program Chair from 2003 to 2014, and worked on prospectuses of the Biennials and other exhibitions.