For artist Ivy Jacobsen (b.1974), painting is like a meditation, a chance for uninterrupted contemplation, and a search for peace. Jacobsen’s work looks beyond everyday perceptions of nature toward a more imaginative realm. She recalls dusky evenings spent on the banks of the Kings River in California’s Central Valley, where in the muted half-light, the air came alive with insects and dust. Forms of trees and plants faded into silhouette, creating an almost magical environment. In her jewel-like oil paintings, the artist seeks to recreate these scenes and open our awareness to nature’s infinite possibilities.

Jacobsen creates the otherworldly environments in her paintings by adding bronzing powder to her oils. This material has fueled her recent work by allowing her to evoke a shimmering atmospheric quality in the skies behind her stark silhouettes.

Ivy Jacobsen was born in Kingsburg, California. Her early years spent in rural California laid the foundation for her continued exploration of the natural world through her artwork. Jacobsen studied art history in Paris before continuing her studies at The San Francisco Art Institute and San Francisco State University, from which she received a bachelor’s degree in painting and printmaking with honors. Ivy lives and works in San Francisco.