“Summer Camp ’23”
28″ h x 22″ w, screen print (signed, numbered 7/50) (2023)
“Pool Side”
20″ h x 16″ w, screen print (signed, numbered 12/50) (2019)
“Stifled”
14″ h x 11″ w, risograph (signed, numbered 38/100) (2021)
One of the best pieces of advice I got when I began collecting was simply “look at a lot of art.” Discovering Jillian Evelyn’s work was a great example of that advice paying off. Seeing an intriguing print by a different artist led me to an online gallery, which led me to Evelyn’s work–though not any of these prints. In fact, the first three times I attempted to purchase one of Evelyn’s works I was stymied by an early sell out!
I’m not normally attracted to figural art (nudes or otherwise), but Evelyn’s works immediately grabbed me in how they evoked some of the great pop artists of the 20th century–simple designs, a limited color palette, timeless subject matters, and yet a distinctive and immediately recognizable style that feels fresh and contemporary without being faddish. So I resolved to be undeterred by the difficulty, and eventually I was able to obtain a copy of “Summer Camp ’23” (appropriate, since this print was made as part of The Jaunt series here in Oregon). And when I saw that “Pool Side” and “Stifled” were also for sale at reasonable prices, I jumped all over them.
“Giddy-Up”
20″ h x 16″ w, screenprint (signed, numbered 75/75) (2024)
“Gloom Bloom”
24″ h x 18″ w, screenprint (signed, numbered 65/75) (2024)
Always on the prowl for new Jillian Evelyn works, I bought these as holiday presents for the end of 2024 (after losing an attempt to purchase one of her paintings at an auction a few weeks earlier). Both pieces dovetail nicely with work already in my collection. “Giddy-Up”, of course, matches up with “Summer Camp ’23” in the “woman on horseback” genre. But “Gloom Bloom” caught my eye because of how it paired with Kii Arens’ lithograph “Vote Joy”, which I purchased in advance of the 2024 election as my way of donating to the Kamala Harris campaign. “Because she’s crying?”, my wife asked? “Because of the 70s-style flowers,” I replied — though in hindsight, I’d say we’re both correct.
“Keen”
24″ h x 18″ w, screenprint (signed, aside from an edition of 200) (2023).
A friend saw this and quipped “I too like to make sure to match my nipples to my lipstick and nails.” I told her that she would make a very nice two-color screen print then!
“Contorted”
7.5″ h x 7.5″ w, archival pigment print on perforated blotter paper (signed, printer’s proof aside from ed. of 50) (2020)
The print is cool, but the perforations on the paper make me very nervous. I honestly don’t know why 1xRun chose to make it this way.
“I’ll Never Look at You the Same”
19” h x 13” w, archival pigment print on paper (unsigned as issued, numbered 115/250) (2019)
“I Need Space (Blue Variant)”
14″ h x 23″ w, screenprint (signed, AP aside from an edition of 50) (2018)
“I’ll Never Look at You the Same” was made for the Heliotrope Foundation, a non-profit which uses art to help heal communities afflicted by natural disasters or other social crises. Not long after, I acquired “I Need Space”, which was from a different publisher (1xRun) but obviously comes from the same series. The first person I talked to who saw the latter (other than myself) immediately said “looks like a Greek goddess!” Not the thought I had immediately but you know what? I kind of see it. What stood out for me, though, is I believe these are the only prints I own of Evelyn’s featuring a freckled visage.
David Schraub 