Jessie Van der Laan is an interdisciplinary artist living and working in Knoxville, TN. By creating landscapes that transcend physicality to describe inner, imagined spaces, she evokes transitional boundaries between attachment and loss, memory and hope. She applies a layered, cyclical approach to her work in print, fiber and installation, fluidly switching and intertwining mediums. Van der Laan was raised in Denver, CO, whose terrain continues to lend form and color to her imagery. Her work is informed by her training as a printmaker, and a childhood spent knitting, sewing, drawing, and daydreaming. She received her BFA in Printmaking and Drawing from Washington University in St. Louis, and her MFA in Studio Art from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. She has shown her work in numerous regional, national and international exhibitions. Recently, she was included in Print Resonance, at the Musashino Art University, in Tokyo, Japan, Borders and Boundaries at the Harwood Art Center in Albuquerque, NM, and Fusion, at Ball State University in Muncie, IN. Her work will be featured in a solo exhibition at Lindenwood University in St. Louis, MO in the spring of 2013. She is currently an adjunct faculty member at Pellissippi State Community College, and the Printshop Technician at the University of Tennessee.
