East Gallery
Jennifer Cocoma Hustis
Recent Works
August 2 thru October 1, 2004
Welcome
Home Jennifer!
Before the construction of the Capitol dome, Jennifer Cocoma Hustis
was invited to exhibit at the Capitol Gallery. As the construction
started on the dome, her exhibit was postponed until further notice.
Since then, Hustis’ husband, who serves for the United States
Navy, received military orders to move to Florida. For the past two
year’s she and her husband had been living in Pensacola, FL.
In the summer of 2004, Hustis and her husband moved back to Oklahoma
City to be stationed at Tinker Air Force Base. Hustis’ approach
to painting her subjects is a result of her belief of “sensory
communication” or the impending effect of an encounter. This
approach allows the artist to capture this connection from the animal
and in return allow the viewer to experience the same. Hustis even
attended a class to learn “Equus,” a silent communication
system used by horses.
Her work has been exhibited in numerous galleries and museums in the
United States and abroad. Among the many other awards received for
her work, Hustis also won the Artists Award of Excellence from the
Oklahoma Visual Artists Coalition. The Oklahoma Arts Council is honored
to have Jennifer Cocoma Hustis in the Capitol Gallery and back in the
State of Oklahoma.
Artists Statement
I believe that art and training horses are based on sensory communication
and are ways of learning through an encounter. Every movement made
by the rider is felt and affects the horse; every mark that is created
by the artist affects the final image and eventually the viewer.
I am inspired by the animals in my life. I work life size or larger so that the viewer feels the presence of the animal. In using oil sticks, my process of painting is like drawing with paint. I use my hands rather than paintbrushes. This tactile way of working is in a way reminiscent to petting the animal.
– Jennifer Cocoma Hustis
Sponsored by the Oklahoma Arts Council. For more information contact Scott Cowan or Karen Sharp at 405.521.2931 or scott@arts.ok.gov