About the Artist
JESSICA D. ARMSTRONG b.1970 is an American representational oil painter living and working in Colorado. Jessica began drawing at a young age, with sketches that show a deliberate reflection of the people and things in her world that held special meaning to her. Her path toward painting was sparked as a freshman in college, when a lesson in Art History of the painting Ophelia (1851-1852) by Sir John Everett Millais, ignited a fascination with the ability to depict emotional depth and narrative power within a painting. Jessica's solo show for her BFA at The San Francisco School of Art portrayed her own peaceful version of Ophelia, where Ophelia is represented in a transcendent state, floating above the water.
Recurring through her work is a sensibility to emotional resonance. Through her figures and landscapes, the natural world is approached as a site of contemplation for the interior world. With this always in mind, Jessica's approach considers where atmosphere, light, and gesture carry meaning with subtle restraint,
Jessica's work has been recognized in juried exhibitions, including Mico, selected as a finalist by the Portrait Society of America, and Reaching Through The Veil, a triptych, featured in the Salt Lake City Church History Museum's 13th International LDS Exhibition.
GALLERY REPRESENTATION
The Main Street Gallery
399 Main St.
Carbondale, Colorado, 81623
SELECTED AWARDS & RECOGNITION
Longlisted, Almenara International Art Competition 2026 & Online Exhibition, 2026
Selected Exhibition, Church History Museum, Salt Lake City, 13th International LDS Art Exhibition, 2025-2026
Finalist, Portrait Society of America, Members Only Competition, Animals As The Subject, 2024
People's Choice Award & 2nd Place, Valley Visual Art Show, Carbondale, Arts, 2025
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS & SHOWS
13th International LDS Art Exhibition, Lift Up The Hands That Hang Down, Church History Museum, Salt Lake City, Utah 2025-2026
Valley Visual Art Show, R2 Gallery, Carbondale Arts, Carbondale, Colorado, 2023, 2024, 2025, 2026
Plein Air Invitational, Redstone Art Foundation & Redstone Gallery, Redstone, Colorado, 2024
Las Lagunas Gallery Show, Botanical, Las Lagunas Gallery, Laguna Beach, California, 2023
Solo Show, Before You Go: Rose Portraits and Haiku, River Valley Ranch, Carbondale, Colorado, 2021
Solo Show -- Bachelor of Fine Art, The San Francisco School of Art, San Francisco, California, 1997
EDUCATION
Rome Art Residencies, Rome, Italy, 2023
Mentorship, Daniel Sprick, 2018 - 2020
BFA, The San Francisco School of Art, San Francisco, California, 1997
Brigham Young University, BFA Program, Provo, Utah, 1990-1993
Ricks College (BYU-Idaho), Art History & Psychology, A.S., Rexburg, Idaho, 1988-1990
PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS
Portrait Society of America
Oil Painters of America
American Impressionist Society
Art Renewal Center
The Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators
Carbondale Arts
Aspen Art Museum
