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Taking the advice of those who say, "Don't quit your day jobs," Jane and Jessey have not left employment to be starving artists. In fact, they work together in a small, crowded and rather dismal office that is a decorator's nightmare and that wears on a person's sense of aesthetics. In addition to that, workdays can get tense sometimes. Jane is especially prone to stressing out so Jessey suggested doing some painting at lunch time to help manage stress and to brighten up the office a little bit.
Over the past few years, they’ve done a lot of projects – usually painting six canvases at a time, using a pre-chosen pallette. These paintings are displayed above Jessey’s work cubie (since it’s the only real wall in the place), and they typically stay up for several months before they’re taken down to make room the next group. Visitors sometimes come by just to see the latest display. This project lifts the spirits of many – not just J & J who spend many lunch hours planning and painting and hanging and rearranging.
Below is one grouping (excuse the pole in front of one – as we said, the office is a mess!). This was a spring project using Easter egg colors. Some of these canvases were eventually painted over for other projects, but some are still in existence and may be offered for sale on this website at some point.
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One of the silliest projects done in Jane and Jessey's office was an inquiry window for one of the employees who had only a half-wall around her cubie and had no privacy. Jane and Jessey felt bad for her, so one day when a large table was delivered and the box was lying on the floor, Jessey picked it up and took it apart, unfolding the box into one large piece of cardboard. At that moment, the idea was borne to make an extension for the half-wall by placing the cardboard on top. But a plain piece of cardboard would just add to the ugliness of the office so it was decided that the cardboard must be painted. Jessey and her co-worker (not Jane - she must have been on vacation!) cut out a hole for a window and got the paints out. Jessey's co-worker had never painted before, but Jessey put a paintbrush in her hand and said, "Just do it!" (typical Jessey) The result was a charming inquiry window complete with curtains! Check it out below! (Jane, back from vacation, shows off the new window.) Not bad for an old piece of cardboard and a novice painter!
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.jpg) Jane Slupecki – In the beginning, when Jessey wanted me to paint with her, I thought it was a dumb idea. We only had 1/2 hour for lunch and the office is so small - where were we going to find room? But Jessey kept insisting. She can be very pushy, and annoying! But she's a good egg, and I have to admit, she was right. I really get into painting sometimes, and it does help with the stress.
We've done some really nice paintings together, and I've been pleasantly surprised at what we can do just working during our lunch breaks. Jessey is usually a pretty patient person, but she did get very annoyed with me when I gave up on the Fractometrics. It was MY idea to do the stained glass look, but as it turned out, it was just too fussy for me. So, Jessey took over and finished the entire project. The paintings came out great! I hope somebody buys them soon though because Jessey won't let me put up new ones until she takes those down, and I have a feeling she's going to display them for a LONG time since it took her so long to finish them.
I don't know what our next project will look like - we never do - but I'm ready to start a new one.
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 Jessey Ina-Lee – Jane is one of the funniest people I know, and she's a riot to work with. You never know what she's going to do or what scheme she'll come up with. She likes to celebrate things - anything. Like when I went to the March for Women's Lives in Washington. Before I left she took up a collection - the Free Jessey! Collection - to get me out of jail just in case I got arrested at the protest march. When I got back, she had a party for me and served a cake she'd made that had a picture of a jail cell on top. Another celebration was when I got bit by a bat and had to have the whole series of rabies shots. Jane had a party and passed out dracula teeth to everyone and then served root beer floats so we could foam at the mouth (see picture below). It's all very silly and very funny. And it keeps us laughing!
Our painting together is a lot of fun (for the most part). We call our paintings "Nooners" because we do them at lunch time. When I first suggested painting, Jane said she couldn't do it but I made her do it anyway (yeah, she's right, I'm bossy). She's done some very nice work. We did get crosswise with each other when we did the Fractometric series. She wanted to do a series that mimicked stained glass, but she didn't realize how tedious this would be. It took months to finish these paintings. It required very precise work and lots of it. Jane designed her paintings but couldn't handle the actual painting, so she left the project, leaving the painting to me. We had words over it, but we always get over our little fights (we actually argue quite a bit, but it's mostly recreational - no big deal). And the project was finished. The paintings have really brightened up the office for a good long time now. We'll be starting a new series soon - but no more Fractometric type paintings. We're keeping it loose from now on!
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Jane and Jessey at the Bat Bite Party |
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