Jael O'Connor

Jael O’Connor is a British painter based in Brighton and Hove. She studied Fine Art Painting at the University of Brighton, graduating in 2005. Her main artistic inspiration lies with the portrait and figurative painting, which has grown from her love of life drawing and painting.

O’Connor is interested in the narratives that her subjects project, whether consciously or unconsciously. She works primarily in oils. Her works are in several private collections and was a finalist in the 2020 Holly Bush Painting Prize for Emerging Women Artists. Jael is also a member of the artists cooperative Studio 106 Hove, and a guest tutor at Draw Brighton.

With her works, Jael says,” I am interested in the human form, face and character and the theatre of how we present ourselves to the world. I am concerned with costume and the internal narratives that my subjects project through how they look. The clothes, hairstyles or accessories that my subjects are often adorned with, or the lack thereof, are an important theme in my work; this can signify identity and the emotional or psychological hinterland of the sitter or subjects. “

”I have also painted a series of self-portraits that deal with approaching 50. I wanted to focus on the passing of time, with my hair turning grey. As we grow older, we become more invisible, but I think my direct gaze adds a certain amount of defiance in the face of getting older and challenges the viewer to look. I am concerned with colour, light and the physical feeling of painting. I use oils, preferring to work fairly loosely, with the paint and the brush mark being as important as the subject itself.”