News
September 16 through October 30, 2026
Experience Jessica Swan’s latest exhibition at the Williamsburg Contemporary Art Center’s Main Gallery. Visit during open hours to browse original works available for purchase. Meet the creators on-site, observe live demonstrations of their techniques, and engage in conversations about the art.
The Artist’s Journey
I am a mixed-media artist drawn to the profound, powerful spaces between what is seen and what is felt. Working with acrylic paint, printmaking, graphite, colored pencil, ink, and layered textures, I create abstract narratives that explore transformation, embodiment, memory, and the enduring relationship between women and the natural world.
My current practice is rooted in feminist abstract expressionism and guided by intuition, gesture, and material experimentation. I am interested in cycles of emergence, rupture, resilience, and renewal—how organic forms, symbolic imagery, and layered surfaces can hold the complexities of lived experience and the often-unseen emotional landscapes we carry.
Alongside my studio work, I lead a nonprofit focused on addiction recovery, family healing, and education. This work in human development and recovery science deeply informs my art. Each piece becomes a conversation between body, spirit, and landscape—an invitation to consider the cyclical rhythms of birth, loss, transformation, and renewal, and the essential, enduring strength of the feminine across time.
Inside the Work
Lately, my work has settled into an extremely expressive, yet more reflective space. I find myself leaning into a newer direction of feminist abstract expressionism, a shift that began quite naturally after spending time with an exhibition of women painters at the Muscarelle Museum of Art. Their approach to form and feeling resonated with me deeply, leading me to start each piece with intuitive gestures. On the canvas, acrylics and graphite begin to layer into a slow conversation, where the materials tell a story of their own before my own thoughts take hold, creating a tactile world for you to explore.
In this current series, I try to stay present with the shifting life of the painting, letting each mark respond to the one before it. It’s a gentle process of discovery where a connection to the natural world meets a quieter exploration of feminine resilience. I find a sense of peace in this practice of adding and uncovering, letting hidden symbols and organic shapes emerge in their own time. It is a very personal, meditative way of working, where layers of ink and paint serve as quiet witnesses to a new chapter of growth, inviting a sense of history into these more modern, textured surfaces.
Knowing when a piece is finished is more about a feeling of balance than a planned result. I look for a subtle harmony where the inspiration I felt at the Muscarelle meets my own daily observations, eventually finding a certain stillness. I find myself reaching a point where the mixed media feels cohesive and at rest, despite the fact that I am frequently bold and extensively layered. When a painting finally carries that sense of enduring strength, I know it is ready to leave my studio and become part of your personal space, hopefully bringing a touch of that same transformation and renewed calm into your home.