Jennifer Sowders is known for her highly textured, impasto landscapes that highlight the beauty and vibrancy of nature. She paints with acrylics and a palette knife, as well as a silicone-tipped implement, which she uses in a mark-making fashion. “Because I have lots of trees and underbrush, I use a paint-laden string to whip branches as well, because as the texture grows and paint dries, it’s the only way I can get the branches in an unbroken fashion as the paint slaps down into all those textural trenches,” Sowders explains of her process. “For the finest of branches I [use] a cartridge-loaded ink brush, but it’s the only use of any brush in my textural acrylic paintings. Using a brush would otherwise change the style, which I don’t want; therefore it’s only reserved for branches.”
Breathe, acrylic and ink on canvas, 16 x 20 in.
Daffodil Grove, acrylic on canvas, 16 x 20 in.A recent work by the artist, Beneath the Elderflower, depicts a small flock of chickens making their way through dense foliage. “Living on a dead-end road in the country lends itself to embracing farm life, and so this scene is from my chicken yard. Within their enclosure I have a lot of elderberry shrubs. When they are in bloom, I’m always taking reference photos of these big umbrella-like bracts that are loaded with tiny white blossoms. Unfortunately I can’t just sneak in there—the chickens follow me. On this rare occasion I decided to steal the attention from the flowers and let my nosey chickens take the stage,” she says.
Beneath the Elderflower, acrylic on wood panel, 11¾ x 16 in.
Coki Point, acrylic on canvas, 16 x 20 in.
“One of my favorite collectors recently mentioned how much they love the blue skies that peek through my trees, which got me thinking as I do a lot of fall scenes… that it’s just the work of nature’s complimentary palette that works in my favor. The blue against those warmer and showy leaves make a pretty scene but the science behind what it does optically makes it successful on a deeper level.” This can be seen in pieces like Breathe and Song of the Maple.
Song of the Maple, acrylic on canvas, 30 x 40 in.
Cuyahoga, acrylic on canvas, 30 x 40 in.
A particularly vibrant painting is Sowders’ Daffodil Grove, which features a stream rippling through bright green grass, flanked by daffodils. The artist’s neighbor started this grove more than 30 years ago, continually adding more flowers and “growing the ‘wow’ of this majestic grove.”
Sowders is a 1994 BFA graduate from the Columbus College of Art and Design and has signature membership in the Ohio Watercolor Society, Kentucky Watercolor Society and Watercolor USA Honor Society, as well as associate membership in Allied Artists of America, the American Impressionist Society and National Oil & Acrylic Painters’ Society. She is currently represented by the Toledo Museum of Art’s Collector Corner and Gallery 317 in Bryan, Ohio. —
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