To say that Jane Stratton is a painter, while accurate, does not suffice in describing her craft. She is a maker first and foremost, something that is becoming increasingly evident in her work, which blends two-dimensional figurative realism with cast sculptural elements coated in gold leaf.
Americana, oil, 23k gold leaf, plaster and fabric on linen panel, 16 x 20 in.
Several years ago, wanting to bring more texture into her paintings, she got the idea to cast molds of the ornate gilt frames holding Revolutionary War-era portraits of her ancestors and incorporate them into her work. She has since made countless molds of (mostly) organic matter—leaves, butterfly wings, flower petals, seeds—anything that adds an abstract element to the piece and/or another layer to the narrative. The cast material is usually sourced from her marshy Georgia environment.
In her latest body of work, which will be presented at Robert Lange Studios from March 6 through 27, Stratton is pushing the boundaries of her art-making in terms of both construction and concept.
The most outside-the-box piece in the show is literally a box made of linen-wrapped panels. Titled Pandora’s Box, the work will feature a portrait of Hope personified which, according to the myth, was the only thing that remained trapped inside when Pandora closed the container.
The Gift, oil, 23k gold leaf and plaster on linen panel, 13 x 12 in.
“Everything is not idyllic in this show,” says Stratton. “There is darkness. It’s been a rough year, and it comes out in my work. I thought, ‘to hell with it, I’m just going to paint what I feel, and this body of work is closer to that than anything I’ve done before.”
She points to two paintings in the show that she says depict “the two sides of June.” The Optimist is a picture of a young girl surrounded by painted and cast sunflowers. “There’s this part of me that wants to believe everything is sunny and rosy, and that just wants to paint beauty all the time. Then there’s another side that wants to paint a meaningful subject about this time and place we’re in.” That side of Stratton can be seen in Americana,in which three-dimensional cast bullets fly past smudged red lips. Stratton says she’s not necessarily anti-gun. “I just don’t like seeing people shoot each other,” she says. “It’s a statement about our culture, about growing up and watching all those shoot ‘em up John Wayne movies and what it turns us into.”
Out of Sight, oil, 23k gold leaf and plaster on linen panel, 30 x 30 in.
Bullets (and seeds) also appear in Out of Sight in which a woman is blindfolded by her own braid. In the upper left of the painting, Stratton has incorporated gold-painted cast magnolia leaves and some bits of twisted fabric.
To bring yet another layer of texture and effect, Stratton often projects patterns and even words over her models during their photoshoots. In one piece, she projected the word “hush” over her model’s mouth. In The Optimistshe projected over-sized flowers on and around the girl.
The Optimist, oil, metal leaf and plaster on linen panel, 48 x36 in.
“I do a lot of things just because I just want to see what it looks like when I’m done with it,” says Stratton. “It only seemed natural to me to add three-dimensional objects to my paintings. I just love making things. And making things with your hands is a little different than the finesse of painting—it’s like making mud pies all over again.”
Larger Than Life, featuring Stratton’s new large scale paintings, opens with a reception on March 6 from 5 to 8 p.m. in Charleston, South Carolina. —
Robert Lange Studios 2 Queen Street • Charleston, SC 29401 (843) 805-8052 • www.robertlangestudios.com
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