Artwork copyright Shelley Jordon. Photo courtesy of the artist.

Crystal Water, 1996

Shelley Jordon
(American, born 1954)

Location: Edison Elementary School, Tacoma

ABOUT THE ARTWORK

Crystal Water is a still life painting by artist Shelley Jordon. The richly detailed composition highlights the interplay of light, pattern, and color among flowers, fruit, fabric, and crystal vases. The scene is set against the horizon of a distant landscape. The artist notes, “My paintings celebrate the power and beauty of domestic spaces and objects. I paint directly from life, in natural light, still life objects which communicate through a window with a landscape, urban or natural. The objects, culled from daily life and painted larger than life, take on a monumental quality as viewed against the landscape, challenging established hierarchies between traditionally male and female spaces.”

This artwork was acquired for the State Art Collection in partnership with Tacoma School District.

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Portland, Oregon-based artist and teacher Shelley Jordon creates still-life, landscape, and narrative paintings as well as animations and video installations. A graduate of the School of Visual Arts in New York City and Brooklyn College, where she received her Master of Fine Arts degree, Jordon is a professor of art at Oregon State University.