Jillian Moore: Creatura, A Thing Created

Artist list

Jillian Moore

“Creatura- A Thing Created”, new work by US artist Jillian Moore. Jillian has an eye for color like no other. Her colors pop off the forms or languish accentuating the sensuality of the bulbous forms. Her unusual forms are inspired by as she says “amateur interests in biology”. Memories of her life science classes are present in her work. You can see the inspiration in the bulbous shapes, vibrant colors and vast textures as if she has created new life forms of flora.

Although Jillian has a classic metalsmithing training and an MFA in metalsmithing. She is not a technique driven metalsmith that is common within the field. Rather she tries to make her making process ambiguous to the eye and signs of her hand not present in the work. Jillian’s process is very labor and time intensive, but not the usual laborious process of precious metals. This gives Jillian’s work a freedom and freshness that makes the jewelry comes to life. The forms are fabricated out of fiberglass and sanded. As she says “ It is a meditative state of redundancy.” After the forming of the fiberglass she applies many layers of paint and resin, making the forms solid, durable and glossy.

Jillian jewelry is grounded in science. As the first child of four to go to college in her family she was determined to be an art major. Her interest in Science is what still feeds her work today. She is interested in the dichotomy of our interest in nature. The preciousness we have for nature and our destructive process in learning about it. There is a push and pull between the beautiful and the ugly. Jillian plays into this in her work. Her work can be grotesques in form and beautifully desirable surfaces. Her shiny surfaces are appealing and use of bright colors. You can see the influences of life science.
In titling the work Jillian looks to Greek and Latin language. She enjoys the process of naming her new specimens as if creatures of a new life form recently discovered.
Her jewelry could easily translate into larger sculptures. Jillian enjoys the small scale and feels the work has a relationship with the body when worn. As if they were boils or growths coming out of the body. Making them curious objects of beauty and peculiarity.