Jessica McGarry Bartlet Show
Sept 25 to Oct 25, 2025
Artist Reception Oct 3 from 4 to 6
My Landscape painting is a physical dance composed of line, color, and the joy of mark-making.
I want you to see the paint, I want you to see the picture, and I want you to feel these moments
in time just as I did.
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As an observational artist, I respect that abstraction is inherent in the art-making process. It is
undeniably a human filter of emotion, intellect, and memory. It is fundamental to understand
abstraction as the result of a lived experience. It is filtered through the human mind and reduced
by visual limitations. I think it is the very confines of that process that ignite my curiosity and
expand the possibilities of a painting.
For me, color and shape are the representatives of light. Light is color, and color is light. In the
visual language of landscape painting, color is the timestamp of a moment. It tells us the time,
location, and physical conditions of the experience. This body of work is the continued
exploration and collection of moments.
It is mark-making that leaves the undeniable thumbprint of the human touch in a painting. When
viewing work, the marks themselves give each piece its rhythm, and also, a collection of
paintings, when viewed together, creates synergy. Manipulation of the physical texture of the
paint remains distractingly exciting to me.
The studies in my small work are controlled, and always too tight really - the larger work allows
for opening up those tight compositions in a newfound observation of space. The play of making
small work and alternately, larger work, produces a more gestural, energetic paint application.
For me, the scale provides different but necessary answers to the same questions.
So in the dance of line, color, and mark-making, I am mindful of their significance to each
moment I attempt to capture, in each picture I try to hold, and in every painting I make.
Bartlet 2026 Artist Bio
Jessica McGarry Bartlet is a professional artist. She grew up in Southeast Connecticut and
graduated from St. Bernard High School. Bartlet attended Eastern Michigan University and
received a BFA with a concentration in Drawing in 2005. She attended the New York Studio
School for the 2007 Drawing Marathon with Graham Nickson and as an MFA candidate at
Western Connecticut State University from 2007 to 2009. She held a residency at the Vermont
Studio Center in the spring of 2010 and was accepted as a member, via invitation, to the First
Street Gallery, an artist-run gallery in New York City in 2010. Bartlet currently serves on the
board of First Street. She teaches art history at Post University and Naugatuck Valley
Community College and still prioritizes teaching watercolor for EdAdvance continuing education.
Bartlet lives in Northwest, CT, and published her first book, Backyard Wilderness, in 2024.
Teaching Statement
My own art practice, which involves drawing and painting, is a physical dance composed of
lines, color, and the joy of mark-making. I want you to see the paint, I want you to see the
picture, and I want you to feel these moments in time just as I did. As an educator, I want my
students to recognize, understand, and celebrate the lived experience—and learn a little about
creating art as well.
As an observational artist, I respect that abstraction is inherent in the art-making process. It is
filtered through the human mind and reduced by visual limitations. When teaching the physical
skills of art making, I am also building my students' skills and comprehension through processes
that involve not only creating art but also holding space for meaningful discussions on the
foundational elements of art.
As a professional artist, I am deeply committed to providing students with real-world insights into
not only my craft but also how it fits into a real-life context. How does one become a
professional in this industry? What does that mean? What does “going to work” mean when you
call yourself an artist? My students leave my classes with an introduction to the professional
skills needed to monetize their skill set.
undeniably a human filter of emotion, intellect, and memory. It is fundamental to understand
abstraction as the result of a lived experience. It is filtered through the human mind and reduced
by visual limitations. I think it is the very confines of that process that ignite my curiosity and
expand the possibilities of a painting.
For me, color and shape are the representatives of light. Light is color, and color is light. In the
visual language of landscape painting, color is the timestamp of a moment. It tells us the time,
location, and physical conditions of the experience. This body of work is the continued
exploration and collection of moments.
It is mark-making that leaves the undeniable thumbprint of the human touch in a painting. When
viewing work, the marks themselves give each piece its rhythm, and also, a collection of
paintings, when viewed together, creates synergy. Manipulation of the physical texture of the
paint remains distractingly exciting to me.
The studies in my small work are controlled, and always too tight really - the larger work allows
for opening up those tight compositions in a newfound observation of space. The play of making
small work and alternately, larger work, produces a more gestural, energetic paint application.
For me, the scale provides different but necessary answers to the same questions.
So in the dance of line, color, and mark-making, I am mindful of their significance to each
moment I attempt to capture, in each picture I try to hold, and in every painting I make.
Bartlet 2026 Artist Bio
Jessica McGarry Bartlet is a professional artist. She grew up in Southeast Connecticut and
graduated from St. Bernard High School. Bartlet attended Eastern Michigan University and
received a BFA with a concentration in Drawing in 2005. She attended the New York Studio
School for the 2007 Drawing Marathon with Graham Nickson and as an MFA candidate at
Western Connecticut State University from 2007 to 2009. She held a residency at the Vermont
Studio Center in the spring of 2010 and was accepted as a member, via invitation, to the First
Street Gallery, an artist-run gallery in New York City in 2010. Bartlet currently serves on the
board of First Street. She teaches art history at Post University and Naugatuck Valley
Community College and still prioritizes teaching watercolor for EdAdvance continuing education.
Bartlet lives in Northwest, CT, and published her first book, Backyard Wilderness, in 2024.
Teaching Statement
My own art practice, which involves drawing and painting, is a physical dance composed of
lines, color, and the joy of mark-making. I want you to see the paint, I want you to see the
picture, and I want you to feel these moments in time just as I did. As an educator, I want my
students to recognize, understand, and celebrate the lived experience—and learn a little about
creating art as well.
As an observational artist, I respect that abstraction is inherent in the art-making process. It is
filtered through the human mind and reduced by visual limitations. When teaching the physical
skills of art making, I am also building my students' skills and comprehension through processes
that involve not only creating art but also holding space for meaningful discussions on the
foundational elements of art.
As a professional artist, I am deeply committed to providing students with real-world insights into
not only my craft but also how it fits into a real-life context. How does one become a
professional in this industry? What does that mean? What does “going to work” mean when you
call yourself an artist? My students leave my classes with an introduction to the professional
skills needed to monetize their skill set.