Jen E. Sanders, From Bed, 2024, 30 x 40 x 0.75 in

“I make representational, figurative paintings—depictions of my own experience of motherhood/mortality, neurodivergence, and the painfully ridiculous."

Artwork Archive's Featured Artist, Jen E. Sanders, dives into the intersections of motherhood, identity, and the quietly absurd moments of family life through her vibrant oil and acrylic paintings.

Her scenes reveal the raw beauty and chaos of family, where a sunset-colored canvas meets a trash bin filled with Barbies, and a dog bounds into the frame.

Jen's work speaks to the domestic landscapes of motherhood and the strange magic of ordinary moments. “Family life,” she reflects, “is lovely, funny, and horrifying,” and her art invites us into this complexity, giving viewers a window into everyday situations that somehow hold space for the extraordinary.

Artwork Archive had the chance to chat with Jen E. Sanders about her creative process, her exploration of identity, and how Artwork Archive helps her manage her art career. ​ 

You can see more of her work on Discovery and learn more about her art practice below:

Jen E. Sanders, Girls Going Places, 2024, 24 x 30 x 0.75 in

Can you walk us through your creative process? How do you begin a piece, and how do you know it’s complete? Do you have a favorite part of your process?

Every artist has 'idea soup' right?

In my case, I’m listening to podcasts about the origins of life, the microbiome, or UFOs; learning about low-demand parenting and the neurodiversity movement; reading fanciful Victorian romance novels or women-authored sci-fi; watching videos of friends who are choreographing dances, traveling the world, skydiving, pulling tarot cards, or adopting dogs; and looking at paintings by my favorite artists—Alice Neel, Paula Rego, Kathy Bradford, Jennifer Packer…the list is long.

Anyway, like most people, I take thousands and thousands of pictures. I often review them at night, once my daughters are finally asleep beside me.

To sketch compositional ideas in the dark, I use the markup feature on my iPhone’s Notes app. When the kids are in school, I loosely render these ideas on canvas, adding elements or pushing the composition until I recognize something that resonates psychologically. 

To get myself out of my thinking brain, my only goal is to cover the entire canvas with paint.

This might be my favorite part of the process because it engages my body and reveals whatever is unconscious—the magic of the idea soup. 

Once this goal is achieved, I need objectivity to decide what’s next, which could be nothing! Or it could mean turning the thing on its side and obliterating part of the surface with a whole new color.

How do I know it’s complete? Well…I’d say any given painting is paused in its evolution, rather than complete. Ha.

Large canvas underpainting by Jen E. Sanders. Image courtesy of the artist

What was the turning point that led you to use painting to explore your identity and motherhood? 

Before becoming a mother, I earned a master's in painting from NYU and studied printmaking with Kiki Smith. I lived in New York City, up to my elbows in glorious, disparate, thought-provoking contemporary art. I painted, but had little time for it, as I poured my visual energy into my corporate job as a graphic designer/art director.

For a creative outlet, and to be in a community with other oddballs, I did live performance in the evenings.  

Life really changed drastically when I moved to Los Angeles and started a family.

I lost myself in the overwhelm of motherhood. The borders that had defined my identity became porous and leaky, so I started painting as a way to re-introduce myself...to myself.

I have to keep going—to do my part to organize chaos and to model for my girls what we can do with our extra sensitivities.

 

The phrase "Family life is cruel and beautiful" stands out in your artist statement. Could you unpack how this duality manifests in your art?

I think the beautiful part is what I witness—the girls are running, and jumping, their environment feeding their uncanny ideas.

Lately, I've been sitting with the idea that true love is intertwined with trauma; you can’t have one without the other.

I can’t separate myself from my loved one’s anguish, and I can’t protect my children from fear, pain, or loss.

I’ll share an anecdote: my daughters were 5 and 7 when I suddenly had to pivot—a health issue flared up, requiring hospitalization and three surgeries. I couldn’t pick them up and swing them around, but I could sit with them and reassure them that I was still here, still alive.

For a year and a half, I had to parent from the sidelines. Even now, sometimes all I can do is witness them.

Maybe that’s the whole point anyway.

Photo courtesy of the artist, Jen E. Sanders

In hindsight, what’s something you wish you knew before becoming a professional artist? 

I wish I had engaged more with artist-run spaces.

I wish I had realized the impact of finding community. Humans weren’t meant to live in isolation, but I think that's kind of a comfort zone. 

 

What do you think is the most misunderstood aspect of being a professional artist? 

There are so many ways to be an artist and so many distinct art worlds.

If our culture pushes achievement as the only viable aim in our lives, then "success" as an artist has to mean something different from the corporate, capitalist paradigm.

Jen E. Sanders, Eat, 2024, 30 x 24 x 1.5 in

Can you tell us why you decided to use Artwork Archive to manage your art career?

Artwork Archive comes up as the most useful tool in a lot of artist-led spaces, but it was first brought to my attention by a wise and wonderful artist-mentor, Nancy Murphy Spicer. In her course, I was given nuts-and-bolts, concrete steps for building my career as a visual artist.

It’s a long game, and the most important part is to keep accurate records!

Artwork Archive has become an integral part of my practice—I get a jolt of dopamine each time I finish a painting, photograph it, and upload it to my archive—which then seamlessly updates my website.

 

What is your favorite Artwork Archive feature? 

My favorite feature of Artwork Archive is the Reports feature.

I use it every time I apply for an opportunity, share my work in critique groups, or set up for shows.

This feature lets me adopt a curatorial lens for looking at my own work.

Since I can place paintings into collections, it's effortless to create Private Rooms, Portfolio Pages, Tear Sheets, and even Artwork Labels (!) that all fit together.

Recently, my work was featured at a private party in a collector’s home.

She wanted my paintings grouped by theme for different rooms, and I was able to provide her with a tear sheet of ALL my work, allowing her to pick and choose which paintings to display.

She originally thought she'd select 10-15 works, but by the time we hung the show, she had chosen 35!

These were paintings I might have forgotten about had it not been for the meticulous record-keeping I'm able to do with Artwork Archive. 

Jen E. Sanders, Girls Doing Things, 2024, 16 x 12 x 0.75 in

What advice would you give an artist who’s just starting out in their professional career?

Do the thing that feels easy.

Make it a habit—something small that fits into your daily life.

Happiness is fleeting, but a habit sticks around, and this is what you can rely on. 

Jen E. Sanders, Beach Sticks II, 2024, 12 x 12 x 1.5 in