JONELLE SUMMERFIELD

         Jonelle graduated from Indiana University of Pennsylvania in 2001 with a Bachelor of Science in Interior Design. Although she has no formal art education, her mother was her art teacher. She had exposed Jonelle to art since childhood, and then in high school she took a drawing class for extra credit and discovered that she actually enjoyed producing art. After she graduated from college, her mother taught her how to paint with oils. Her mother had taken a lot of workshops with Pittsburgh area artists, yet she also had not studied art formally. Jonelle had worked for eight years as a kitchen designer and is now a full time artist.

“I paint in the realistic style partly for the challenge of it, partly because I want to capture moments, day, and events that will perhaps never occur again.”—Jonelle

A lack of formal training certainly goes unnoticed in Jonelle’s work. Using oil as a medium, she masters the exploitation of its potential; her pieces recall the Italian Renaissance use of chiaroscuro, or the treatment of light and shade, which has a remarkable effect here. The above piece is entitled “Bird Watching” and captures natural sunlight, displaying her affinity for fleeting moments. Jonelle has several pieces in our gallery, all of which display equal artistic dexterity.