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Karen Hale-Jackson
Born on February 9, 1956, Karen Hale-Jackson
in a self taught artist- “I was born with a paint brush in my
hand”. Karen spent all of her free time drawing and painting
when growing up. The only formal training she had in art was at
secondary level at St. Joseph’s Convent POS and for 1 year at
Fanshaw College in Canada.
In 1990, after many years sabbatical, due to
family commitments, Karen once again entered the art world doing
batik paintings. In 1991 she moved to Barbados to work on a
collection for one of Barbados’s top hotels. In 1992, she
returned to Trinidad and worked with ceramics for a few years
before joining the corporate world. In 2000, in her free time,
she started painting in water colour and showed her work for the
first time in the “Women In Art” Exhibition July of that year.
There was no holding her back after that and she has shown at
many joint exhibitions since then. Her first large exhibition
was in 2002 when she had a joint show with her sisters at
Horizons Art Gallery and had another joint exhibition in
November 2008. Karen has also shown her work in Tobago and
Barbados.
In January 2007 Karen
decided to leave the corporate world and go into business for
herself. Unfortunately, due to circumstances beyond her
control, that did not work out but out of bad came good and
Karen is now fulfilling her life long dream and that is to be a
full time artist.
Karen now works mainly in acrylic and paints
local sceneries, houses, people, flora etc. She especially
enjoys doing work by commission as she knows that the piece she
is working on means something special to someone.
Karen’s work is featured on
the “People’s Canvas” on the Oval Wall, the 2010 Edition of the
Ins and Outs Magazine and was one of just a few artists selected
to appear in “A Commemorative UK Publication on the 60th
Anniversary of the Commonwealth”.
Artist’s
Statement
Living in Trinidad makes it very easy for me
as an artist. I paint what I see and feel and as far as I am
concerned Trinidad is an artist’s paradise. I have not even
touched the tip of the iceberg creatively and have so many
things I still want to capture on canvas – scenes, people, old
buildings etc.
I cannot do a painting unless I “feel” it –
it all comes from the heart and I want to pass this on to others
and as long as I am able I will continue to do this. In my
paintings I try to remind us all that no matter what negative
things go on out there we still have the beauty Trinidad and
Tobago has to offer to turn to for solace.
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