Jenny Wu transforms liquid paint into sculpture built from layers of latex paint poured on glass, color over color, to form a thick cake-like aggregate. Once dried, the material is cut into small brick-like forms and assembled in vibrant patterns on a flat surface, revealing in cross-section the varied strata of paint from the pouring and layering process. Like geological formations, Wu’s method of building up paint is dependent on time, repetition and chance with her resulting objects uniting chaos and order into a systematic imagery that blurs the boundaries between painting and sculpture.
Jenny Wu 2+ Year Long Middle School Dodgeball Game, 2022 latex paint and resin on wood panel 20 x 10 x 2.50 inJenny Wu Adults Were Not Okay, 2021 latex paint and resin on wood panel 20 x 16 x 2.50 inJenny Wu Meaningful Access, 2020 latex paint and resin on wood panel 20 x 16 x 2.50 inJenny Wu Carefully Editing An Email Response, 2021 latex paint and resin on wood panel 24 x 18 x 2.50 inJenny Wu Hardly A Mandate, 2021 latex paint and resin on wood panel 20 x 16 x 2.50 inJenny Wu Have Always Existed and Will Always Exist, 2022 latex paint and resin on wood panel 36 x 24 x 2.50 inJenny Wu Letting Referees Openly Bet On Games, 2021 latex paint and resin on wood panel 36 x 24 x 2.50 inJenny Wu Live In #DontLookUp, 2022 latex paint and resin on wood panel 18 x 18 x 2.50 inJenny Wu Too Heavy to Carry to the British Museum, 2022 latex paint and resin on wood panel 20 x 16 x 2.50 inJenny Wu Got Scared & Bought It, 2021 latex paint and resin on wood panel 20 x 20 x 2.50 in
About the Artist:
Jenny Wu was born in Nanjing, China. She holds a B.A. from William Smith College in Studio Art as well as in Architectural Studies, and an M.F.A. in Studio Art from American University. Her work has been exhibited in galleries and museums including Denise Bibro Fine Art, Katzen Museum, Huntington Museum of Art, Reece Museum, Vilnius Academy of Arts in Lithuania, and CICA Museum in South Korea. Wu has participated in numerous Artist-In-Residence programs across the country; and has been awarded fellowships from Vermont Studio Center and the Pollock Krasner Foundation. She has been represented by Morton Fine Art since 2021.
Jenny Wu transforms liquid paint into sculpture built from layers of latex paint poured on glass, color over color, to form a thick cake-like aggregate. Once dried, the material is cut into small brick-like forms and assembled in vibrant patterns on a flat surface, revealing in cross-section the varied strata of paint from the pouring and layering process. Like geological formations, Wu’s method of building up paint is dependent on time, repetition and chance with her resulting objects uniting chaos and order into a systematic imagery that blurs the boundaries between painting and sculpture.
About the Artist:
Jenny Wu was born in Nanjing, China. She holds a B.A. from William Smith College in Studio Art as well as in Architectural Studies, and an M.F.A. in Studio Art from American University. Her work has been exhibited in galleries and museums including Denise Bibro Fine Art, Katzen Museum, Huntington Museum of Art, Reece Museum, Vilnius Academy of Arts in Lithuania, and CICA Museum in South Korea. Wu has participated in numerous Artist-In-Residence programs across the country; and has been awarded fellowships from Vermont Studio Center and the Pollock Krasner Foundation. She has been represented by Morton Fine Art in Washington, DC since 2021.
JENNY WU’s sculptural paintings transform liquid paint into sculpture, a process derived from making oil on canvas paintings and discovering the many layers of oil paint beneath the surface. These layers embody linear time, repetitive process and material characteristics. WU pours a thick coat of latex paint one color at a time on a glass surface allowing each layer to dry completely and repeating the process many times. She then cuts the dried paint to reveal layers of cross-section, which are then assembled into sculptures on a flat surface. The cross-section juxtaposes order and chaos: the consistent order of paint from old to new, and the imperfection of subtle differences in thickness. Each piece follows a specific pattern, uniting differences to present a systemic imagery. These works question our basic assumptions about what paintings and sculptures can be. Her work acknowledges the sensational and perceptual properties of materiality, and then transforms the materials from their original forms and purpose to present them within new contexts.
JENNY WU earned her MFA in Studio Art from American University in 2015 and her B.A. in Studio Art and Architectural Studies from William Smith College in 2012.
She has been represented by Morton Fine Art since 2021.
JENNY WU, $2000 ASAP, 2020, 14″x12″x2.5″, latex paint and resin on wood panelDetail of $2000 ASAPJENNY WU, A Very Stable Genius, 2019, 24″x18″x2.5″, latex paint and resin on wood panelDetail of A Very Stable GeniusJENNY WU, Big Day for Social Media and FAIRNESS, 2020, 12″x12″x2.5″, latex paint and resin on wood panelJENNY WU, Make A Deal, 2020, 10″x10″x2.5″, latex paint and resin on wood panelDetail of Make A DealJENNY WU, Thank Union for Weekends, 2021, 24″x18″x2.5″, latex paint and resin on wood panelDetail of Thank Union for WeekendsJENNY WU, The Lies Stuck, 2021, 18″x14″x2.5″, latex paint and resin on wood panelDetail of The Lies StuckDetail 2 of The Lies StuckJENNY WU, Time is Running Out, 2020, 18″x14″x2.5″, latex paint and resin on wood panelDetail of Time is Running OutJENNY WU, Why It’s a Holiday, 2021, 20″x20″x2.5″, latex paint and resin on wood panelDetail of Why It’s a Holiday