BIENFAIT, SASKATCHEWAN — Jackie Wall has been a visual artist and creator throughout her entire life.
She's been experimenting with different mediums and ideas, creating paintings, colouring books and various designs she puts on products, as well as macramé, jewellery and many other unique items and souvenirs. She has some of her art on display in her studio in Bienfait, and this winter and spring she opened her creative space to the public, inviting people to stop by, enjoy the art and maybe find some unique pieces they would like to take home.
"Everything here is either handmade by me, hand painted by me or designed, I don't just paint I use markers and all sorts of different mediums, or they are my designs put on different products like T-shirts, sweatshirts, tote bags, housecoats, scarves," Wall explained.
The next time her studio, located at 310 Taylor Street in Bienfait, will be open to the public, will be May 27 from 1-5 p.m. Wall said she plans on having it open more in June and later in the year, but for the particular dates, people should check Jackie Wall Studio Instagram or Facebook pages.
She's always been interested in art, but that interest was shaped after one episode 20 years ago.
"All my life I have been making things and drawing things. In high school, I did the cover of our yearbook. Art has always been therapy for me, and always something that I've had to do," Wall shared. "But when I went to university, I took business. So, I have a bachelor of commerce degree. I did take a couple of art classes in university, but with commerce, you don't have a lot of options. And then I just did it as a hobby.
“And then I did this painting [one she still has on display in the studio]. This is my second painting I have ever done. And I went to my sister's for a barbecue and there was a bunch of friends there, and they said, 'Oh my goodness, can I get a copy?' And it just went from there."
That happened in 2003, and since then Wall has created many different designs and paintings, and explored many artistic ideas.
While Wall was an artist all her life, the studio is more of a new addition for her as it was built during the pandemic. After her family moved into the new house, Wall turned the garage into a cozy and welcoming art space, where she could work and also have some of her pieces displayed. Everything she creates has a hand touch to it. She paints her designs on paper using different paints, pencils, markers, crayons, etc. and then digitalizes them to develop into various products.
"I like to feel, and I like to smudge and I often draw with both hands," Wall shared. "I like to play around with different mediums because you get different effects."
One of the pieces on display at the studio is an original acrylic painting called Vibrancy – a piece well-known to Estevan since last summer, as it was chosen as one of the three vinyl-printed murals placed on the side of Pharmasave to beautify the city. Surrounding the original are printed copies as well as clothes and accessories with the same design, created by Wall.
"I don't have everything that's on my website in here because there are hundreds of different products, but that painting is also on some of these other products," Wall pointed out.
She also creates designs to be coloured, which come in standard sizes, so they can be framed afterwards and serve as décor. Some designs are available at her website at jackiewallstudio.com to download for free or for a price, as well as at the studio.
"I just really want people to experience creativity and art and have art accessible," she said. "And I encourage people if they like to colour and they're interested in art or design, to go to the website. There are free colouring pages there, or come out here and you can sit and colour. I just want people to be in a space that surrounds them with art and handmade products."
She also has some handmade jewelry that she started creating for herself, but also had people interested in, and so she grew her offering, as well as macramé pieces and many other smaller items that can make great gifts.
"I just like to use my hands in different ways and make different things," Wall said.
