Award-winning artist Janae Corrado serves as an associate professor of Art at the Trinity River Campus of Tarrant County College in Ft. Worth, Texas. When Janae isn't engaging students in the arts and professing her love for the works of Mucha, Vermeer, Klimt, and van Eyck, she can be found in her studio painting dreamlike and surreal images.
ARTIST STATEMENT
The narratives within my artwork reflect the fragile balance of life and death with a fusion of personal experience and mythos. I have two separate bodies of work that I am currently exploring.
My vanitas series, like many of those within art history, is a symbolic work of art showing the transience of life, the futility of pleasure, and the certainty of death. Rather than incorporating symbols of wealth, I focus on symbols of ephemerality (flora, insects). The series is also about rebirth - we are never truly "gone" once we pass, our spirit and energy are reborn within all those we touch.
My insect tessellation series opens the eyes of the viewer to the smallest of our animal kingdom. As a top food chain organism, we as humans often overlook and underappreciate the presence of insects and arachnids. Pesky bugs buzz around us, and some come with an obligatory sting, bite, get into our food, or at times just creep us out. But these seemingly insignificant organisms play a much grander role in our well-being. This series is intended to confront the viewer with organisms at a scale that is far greater than their original size, allowing the viewer to appreciate the delicate and intricate anatomy of these tiny beings. The panels of this series are triangular shaped, allowing for opportunities to tesselate their installation in infinite varying geometric arrangements.
Teaching Philosophy
My goal is to teach students that there is no exact way to create art; that sometimes there are obstacles they may need to overcome, and that coping with ambiguity, expressing opinions, and at times defending judgments are all essential elements required by artists and designers. I use art and design practice to challenge my students to think, ask questions, and be courageous and responsible.
I expect my students to establish an open dialogue between their work and the work of their classmates. The student should know in which direction the work is going and what goal he/she is trying to accomplish, technically, conceptually or both. This discourse enables students to realize how effectively their ideas have been conveyed, and how well they have understood their own goals. The ability to express and articulate oneself is at the core of art and design practice. By challenging students to think beyond mere techniques, to give attention to the content and reason behind their artwork, the quest for learning and the drive to expand their perspective beyond the classroom is instilled.
Students’ ability to stretch beyond their limits inspires me to constantly challenge myself as an artist. Continually engaging in discussions about the place of art and repeatedly articulating why art is important may seem daunting to some but is precisely the reason why I teach.
Specialties Include: Drawing, Painting, Design Theory, Color Theory, Illustration, Visual Problem Solving, Adobe CC (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Dreamweaver)
I expect my students to establish an open dialogue between their work and the work of their classmates. The student should know in which direction the work is going and what goal he/she is trying to accomplish, technically, conceptually or both. This discourse enables students to realize how effectively their ideas have been conveyed, and how well they have understood their own goals. The ability to express and articulate oneself is at the core of art and design practice. By challenging students to think beyond mere techniques, to give attention to the content and reason behind their artwork, the quest for learning and the drive to expand their perspective beyond the classroom is instilled.
Students’ ability to stretch beyond their limits inspires me to constantly challenge myself as an artist. Continually engaging in discussions about the place of art and repeatedly articulating why art is important may seem daunting to some but is precisely the reason why I teach.
Specialties Include: Drawing, Painting, Design Theory, Color Theory, Illustration, Visual Problem Solving, Adobe CC (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Dreamweaver)
Design Philosophy
Outside of my own artwork, I do graphic design for various clientele, from logos and advertisements to magazine layouts. Not only does this kind of work continuously hone skills that I utilize in my own art, but doing design work is an invaluable exercise in verbal and visual communicating and collaborating with outside parties to achieve their goals. I have engaged in numerous professional relationships outside of the classroom doing freelance design for others.
While separate from my fine art exhibition record, these skills are reflected heavily in my digital arts courses, where I use the same software and encourage the same type of collaborative environment as students would experience in a professional setting.
