P.O. Box 632 Findlay, Ohio 45839 Phone: 419-420-9327

Local
A Chat with...Janealla Smalley
By Tamera Rooney
Apr 29, 2008, 22:46

One of the first questions that comes to mind when entering  Jones Building studio #4 is "this is an art studio?"  Off- white carpet, a wonderfully wood crafted storage cabinet, a cozy white chair and artwork on the walls, make this studio seem like a study, or well decorated living room. Instead, it is Janealla Smalley's tranquil studio. We recently enjoyed the comfortable surroundings and talked about her art.

I understand you have an art studio at home. Why do you also have a studio in the Jones Building?

I moved into the Jones Building studio four years ago. I love having other artists around. It allows you to see other people doing artwork and knock around ideas. I enjoy the camaraderie but I also have the opportunity to close my door for solitude if I need it. I give private art lessons in my studio at home, so I have people in and out of my home studio quite a bit. I keep my Jones Building space as my own. I always reserve Sunday night for Jones Building studio night. I come here to feel refreshed for the next week. I love this space.

Is there an artist who inspires you?

Oh, yes, definitely! I am greatly inspired by Adolfe-William Bouguereau. My favorite painting is at the Toledo Museum of Art and it happens to be by Bouguereau. I also visited the Detroit Institute of Art and saw another painting. I loved it so much that I bought a postcard of it. When I got home and looked at the back of the postcard I realized it was also by Bougeureau. I researched him and learned that he is a contemporary of the impressionist painters but refused to give up the old school style of Renaissance artists.

You seem so excited about art. How does this excitement help you with your teaching?

I get excited about almost every art technique, partly because I teach. Or, perhaps I teach because I love learning something new and then sharing it with someone else.  As a teacher of 7th to 12th graders at St. Wendelin, I realize that I have to try many different art techniques to stay fresh with ideas.

I prefer transparent watercolor, but I also like color pencil, oil painting and colored inks. And I am starting to combine some of my art techniques, as well.

I see so many paintings of children today, why is that?

I could tell you so many stories about the paintings. That one is a painting of a little boy in Switzerland. My sister lives there and knows the family. They commissioned me to do it but when they receive the preliminary drawing, they told me it was too big. So I drew it again, and finished it for them. I went ahead and finished the bigger one to keep. I recently had a phone call from the Swiss family. Their son has grown up quite a bit, and now they want me to do another commissioned painting of him.
 
There's a nice vintage feel to the painting behind you. How did you capture it?

The painting behind me is me and my cousin. The original photograph is black and white and I always wanted to do a color painting of it. We were babies when his father, my uncle, came down with tuberculosis. In those days, they placed contagious TB patients in sanitariums. My baby cousin and his mother had to move in with us while his father was hospitalized. We are only 4 months apart and are the only redheads in my family.

Smalley, who has a Bachelors and Masters degree from Bowling Green State University, teaches in her Findlay home studio for $20 per one-hour lesson. She accepts students of all ages and skill levels. Students can take as many or as few lessons as desired. She can be contacted by calling 419-427-3314 or by e-mail at drawntou@aol.com. Smalley's Jones Building studio will be open during Artwalk on May 2. The Jones Building will be open from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. with refreshments, music, and, of course, art.