Until recently, I led someone else’s life. I did what was expected or desired and was a successful person if measured by conventional standards. But a sense of accomplishment or inner satisfaction eluded me until I found art. Once discovered, work began to interfere with my art making, so the plunge had to be taken and I walked away from the financial security of a career in the software development arena.

In December, 2005 I graduated from an Associate of Fine Art Degree program at the Corcoran College of Art & Design in Washington D.C. Since then, I have been on a road exploring identity and self expression. Stylistically, my work would not be considered expressionistic but I would argue that the intent of my work is exactly that.

Perhaps some more personal information will help explain what has informed my work to date:

• I am Irish, and am now living in Maryland. I have also spent several years living in France and the UK. While I love moving, it has its consequences and you lose friends. Building relationships again and again becomes difficult so I have created My People to share my space. Through them I can vocalize my thoughts about myself and that which surrounds me. They are mine to shape and mould and free to invent as I wish. In contrast, the project Intrusions peeks into the private spaces of others. They investigate places that are hidden, where we are normally unwelcome and where thoughts and feelings are strictly private.
• A.K.A. Jackie Singh, I am married to a person of Indian descent from Guyana. He was raised a Hindu and I, a Catholic. Hindu iconography is so different from that of the Catholic religion – the former is sensual, sometimes erotic and is inclusive of Gods, Goddesses and zoomorphic beasts.  The project Exploring Meaning explores what is sacrosanct to another belief system from the point of view of a person who has been indoctrinated in another belief system.
• On a trip to India I was fascinated by the blue cities of Jodhpur and Pushkar. From the walls of the Amber fort in Jodphur, the blue Brahmin rooftops glittered like the ocean in the afternoon sun. Beautiful, but why pronounce yourself?  The Brahmin caste is the highest caste in India. In Pushkar, the blue city rose out of the holy lake, where questionable Brahmin pandits (priests) stalked tourists to part with their money in return for blessings. The project zooming in explores the power of digital photography to zoom into a picture to uncover what is really there.

The projects I have listed are ongoing and will be added to periodically. Thank you for taking the time to visit this site.

Jackie