Jacqueline Teresa Greschke

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I’ve been an artist for as long as I can remember. Artistry is a way of life in my eyes, not a career. The paintbrush gliding across the canvas comes as easy to me as breathing; creating is part of my soul. My work is rooted in storytelling and intimacy. I paint to capture moments that move me- those quiet, beautiful flashes of life that often go unnoticed. Whether it’s a feeling, a memory, or a fleeting glance, I’m drawn to the emotional thread running through everyday experiences.

My life has been full of unique experiences, and I often draw upon those when creating my artwork. For the first ten years of my life, I was raised in the Rio Grande Valley in Southern Texas. I can close my eyes and still feel the salt air on my face. I can remember the lines of palm trees along the roads I travelled every day. One day, my father and I started a new life in South Dakota. The roads aren’t lined with palm trees anymore, but snow-covered plains with the occasional tree grove amongst the fields of corn and soybeans. Now, my father isn’t here anymore to experience the snow or the palm trees, but I carry his love for all of it, for life, deep in my heart, and that is what jumps out onto the canvas when I paint. I’m a mother now, to three beautiful little people, and my hope is that I can impart this way of seeing the world onto them so that they can have a zest for life, making them able to notice those fleeting glances that spark so much of my inspiration as I do.

I work primarily with gouache paint, drawn to its softness and versatility and I often aim to use very saturated colors in many of my paintings. I find that bright, vibrant color creates a feeling of joy that radiates from my art. Each piece is deeply personal, inspired by the life I’m living as I live it. In that personal lens, I’ve found a kind of shared language. I aspire for these moments speak to something universal, so that others can see parts of their own story reflected in mine.

More than anything, I want my work to feel real. I hope it invites others into those moments with me, and maybe even helps them notice something tender in their own lives, too.