Jill Charuk bio

Jill was born and raised in Richmond, BC, a suburb of Vancouver. It was here that she received a degree in fashion design before opening her own clothing manufacturing business. Jill has used colour in all her work for over 35 years. To further develop her skills she completed a colour-training course taught by Leatrice Eiseman, a director of the Color Marketing Group.

After two decades of creative work Jill gave into her urge to paint. Oil paint has proven to be a favourite medium, lending itself to her bold, impressionistic style. The use of brilliant colour had an immediate positive reaction from her clients and collectors. Largely self-taught, Jill has attended numerous workshops in the lower mainland as well as in California, Oregon and Italy.

“I love colour, and lots of it. Living on the northwest coast, I have had my fill of grey skies, cool blues and an over abundance of soggy greens. I decided very early to saturate my canvases with pure brilliant pigment. Orange, mauve or red skies descend over purple shadowed trees and chartreuse grasses. I am constantly pushing myself to take bigger colour risks while still maintaining a “readable’ landscape.

“Each painting contains an emotion that I am trying to convey, largely through the use of colour- how hot that day was, how cool the shadows were and how richly coloured the wildflowers were. All manner of roads, trails and paths, quirky buildings and the occasional dog intrigue me. On a grey day I enjoy buying a big bouquet of flowers, both for painting and filling up my studio. A successful painting is one where I captured the mood and shared the emotion. I wish for them to be arresting and yet restful.

“Alone and in front of the easel, I try to “get out of the way”, that is, step aside and let the colour just spill out onto the canvas in big juicy brushstrokes.

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