The collage works of Jennifer Wilkin Penick have almost as many layers as Rome — the city that started her love affair with Italian art and architecture.
Shortly after moving to the Bay Area from Italy, now years ago, I bought a piece of art from an Art-o-mat vending machine at the Exploratorium in San Francisco. Since it was not possible to choose the artwork, it came as a pleasant surprise when I collected my piece from the vintage metal slot and saw a small collage that included the unmistakable eye of Mona Lisa. That artwork sat on a shelf (mischieviously staring at me) until COVID-19 caused a very necessary bout of spring cleaning.
Having noticed the artist’s contact details on the back of the piece, I thought it would be fun to track her down. As it turns out, the artist, Jennifer Wilkin Penick, lives in Washington D.C., but was in San Francisco on a 6-month-long sabbatical when I contacted her! While the pandemic made it impossible to meet, Jennifer agreed to this interview, which touches upon her art practice, living in Rome and her favorite parts of Italy. Enjoy!
Please note: Should you love Jennifer’s richly textured collages as much as I do, she does have pieces for sale. You can get in touch with her via Instragram messages or send me an email and I’ll connect you.
Interview with Artist Jennifer Wilkin Penick
How would you describe your art practice? What are the major subjects/ themes of your work? What qualities or ideas do you wish your works to imbue?
I would say that I am a "teaching artist". I struggle to carve out time regularly for my own artistic practice because in part I quite enjoy teaching. I teach children and adults, and I am also an artist-in-residence at a DC hospital where I make art with (and for) cancer patients, their families, and hospital staff.
The major themes in my art are, even if sometimes fairly abstract, art, architecture, history, layering and pattern, nostalgia, and natural history.
I strive for my art to express wonder and whimsy while investigating history and the natural world. My work can at times feel somber and at other times lighthearted, but I always aim for beauty in colors, composition, juxtapositions and texture.
What materials do you use to make your work?
I use predominantly paper. New paper, old paper, often painted paper, and sometimes vintage paper collected from Rome's legendary Sunday flea market. I collect it. I cut it, layer it, paint it. Paper of so many different types is endlessly interesting to me.
You lived in Italy for twenty-five years. How has that experience had an effect on your art practice?
I moved to Italy as an impressionable young woman and was so floored by the art and architecture around me that I studied Italian art history and earned an MA. My love of Italy's artistic heritage often finds its way into my work in the form of art reproductions, pieces of maps, and other paper ephemera. Since I lived so much of my life in Rome, the light, colors and culture have always inspired me ... and they still do.
What has surprised or inspired you about your travels in Italy?
Having a chance to repeatedly explore the wealth of Southern Italy has been nothing short of life-changing. Somehow you know that Venice, Florence and Rome will be remarkable, but Southern Italy is less known and it is my happy place. I am especially drawn to the regions of Puglia and Sicily, and I return to them again and again.
When you travel, which art supplies do you always pack?
I always travel light (a carry-on only), so my art supplies are minimal: a not-too-big sketchbook, a well-loved small metal watercolor kit and brushes, but also my favorite fountain pen, as well as an assortment of other pens, pencils, and water soluble pencils.
What are you currently working on/ what's coming up next for you?
I have been working on a series of bright abstract collages that evoke, for me, the simple shapes of medieval architecture. Because of travel restrictions, I haven't been to Italy since this past September, and so I am now thinking of starting a series of collage works inspired by how much I miss my adoptive homeland.
Favorite wine?
Oh, there are so many. I like some lesser-known red wines from south of Rome (such as Cesanese, Negroamaro, or Nero d'Avola), but I suppose that if I had to pick just one it could be Umbria's Montefalco Sagrantino.
Favorite Region of Italy?
Sicily.
Something on your bucket list?
The Palladian villas of the Veneto region, and the Dolomites.
Something or someone for which/ whom you are grateful?
I have always felt that it was truly a privilege to call Italy home. I am grateful that I had the opportunity to grow up in a city as interesting and as visually arresting as Rome.
How can people find you/ follow you?
Getting my own website has been on my list of things to do for far too long. For now, you can follow me on Instagram. I share photos of my art and from the art classes I teach here. And I share photos of my travels (and of my Italian water dog Enzo) here.
Get inspired by Italy with La Dolce Vigna!
While traveling to Italy is not possible at the moment, Italy can still come to you
Introducing La Dolce Vigna’s Wine + Culture Club — not only will you get sommelier-selected Italian wines delivered to your front door each season, but you will also get cultural swag, including artisanal crafts, delicious foodstuffs, books, films, music, etc.
Otherwise, I will be waiting for you on one of my Italy Wine + Culture Tours in 2021 or 2022:
About Leslie Rosa, Founder of La Dolce Vigna Wine + Culture Tour Co.
After a decade of working in the art world for eminent institutions and artists in New York and London, I moved to Italy, fell head over heels in love with the diversity of Italian wine and became a certified sommelier with the Associazione Italiana Sommelier. I created La Dolce Vigna in response to the large, impersonal tours I came across while living in Italy. My company offers curated experiences that impart a full sense of place through family-run and historic wineries, regional cuisine, stunning natural scenery, charming hotels, and, of course, colorful characters! Since moving to the Bay Area in 2014, I have added custom tours of California wine country, and, in 2018, I began introducing clients to the wonders and Italian roots of Mendoza, Argentina. When not leading tours, you can find me doing pop-up wine tastings, writing for the Slow Wine Guide and Wine Tourist Magazine, getting lost someplace beautiful with my travel watercolor set and even dancing tango!