I am a big fan of Providence, RI artist Jen Corace. She has been a frequent contributor to Tiny Showcase which I think was where I first saw her work. You can see her past TS prints here. From what I've seen she has quite a few fans online; some of the art bloggers I follow love her work too.
I enjoy the narrative nature of many of her pieces. I like the two pieces above in particular. I love the moment the piñata piece captures. The girls in the background are either ambivelent or mildly scandalized about what just happened, the girl with the stick has lost her hat in her exertion, and the piñata is dripping something that doesn't may or may not be candy; the details are great.
A lot of Jen's work deals with childhood. And while her subjects often seem to be in some sort of peril, they don't seem like helpless victims to me. Their blank eyes cloak a strength and a capability even while they're surrounded by strangeness or isolation. I always believe they'll prevail.
I was excited to hear that Jen had illustrated a new version of Hansel and Gretel. I think her style is perfect for the themes of the story. I ordered a copy "for E" for Christmas (tee-hee).
Check out Jen's web site here and a current exhibition of hers here.
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