Featured Artist

Jennifer Hoskins – Columbia, SC
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Jennifer Kelly Hoskins (b. 1993) is an artist and arts educator who works primarily in mixed media. She received a Bachelor’s degree in Art Studio from the University of South Carolina. Hoskins studied painting and drawing and worked as a curator and magazine editor in Italy at Florence University of the Arts. While in Italy, her work, Volterra, was both published and shown in the group exhibition “Instudio” at the venue Ganzo. Hoskins has since exhibited at McMaster Gallery, ArtFields, Gallery 120, North Charleston City Gallery, and the South Carolina State Museum. Hoskins was recently an artist in residence at Azule in Hotsprings, NC and Atelier de la Rose in Montcabrier, France.

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Growing up as an introspective child, who observed social situations more than starred in them, I was, and remain, deeply curious about people’s relationship with themselves and how that impacts their connections with others. My work examines these relationships by looking into people’s pasts through symbols. The objects being held symbolize nostalgia for the person holding them. Through layering, building textures, scraping, scratching, and blending the drawings were developed in detail to replicate the vividness of memory that invisibly ties us to our former selves. I believe our former selves are carried within us, continually influencing our lives. When certain parts of the past go unresolved, they become potential blocks in making connections with others, which is problematic. Brené Brown explained the importance of connection saying, “We are hardwired to connect with others, it’s what gives purpose and meaning to our lives, and without it there is suffering” (8). My goal is to give others a platform to share, connect with others, and achieve peace with the past. The vulnerability shown by those represented in the work allows for strong and meaningful connections to be made between viewers and the figures.