Jean Luc Chretien

Artist Statement

My work explores the question: How can color and perspective give form to the intangible structures of my mind? I’ve always been curious about my thought processes, as they are intangible, weird, and undefinable yet deeply personal. Sometimes, I get trapped in them, while other times, they lie in the background and subtly shape my worldview. Through surreal perspectives and environments, I embrace this uncertainty and oddness in my art. Color plays an equally important role in my practice. Before laying colored pencils over my pieces, many of them start with abstract, fluorescent acrylic ink washes. While the washes confuse my sense of natural color relationships, they also draw out something more instinctual in me when choosing later tones and hues. My resulting body of work interrogates my culture, gender, and psychology, exploring the tension between conscious intention and impulse, clarity and confusion.

Artist Bio

Jean-Luc is a 17-year-old multimedia artist and high school Junior at Sidwell Friends School in Washington, DC. He enjoys using art to explore psychology, identity, and perception through surreal and introspective pieces, and he is constantly fascinated by the weirdness and intricacies of our minds. With his practice, he hopes people leave his work feeling confused yet intrigued. He is a National Scholastic Gold Medalist and winner of the Congressional Art Competition, with work exhibited in the U.S. Capitol. Outside the studio, he leads an annual international teen art exhibition focused on mental health and interns with the National Portrait Gallery’s Teen Museum Council. When he’s not making art, he’s running, listening to music, or walking around DC. He hopes to study psychology and art in college.