Jenness Cortez, Master American Realist


"My intention is very simple: I want to share the joy of seeing; to remind the viewer how beautiful, how surprising and how interesting this world truly is . . . if we just take the time to look."

From her rural Averill Park studio, nestled between the the Berkshire and Catskill Mountains, painter Jenness Cortez has, since 1976, dedicated her creative energy to capturing the essence of the world around her. She is a realist in approach, but all her images have always been filtered through the heart.

Education
Born in Frankfort, Indiana, Jenness Cortez began her formal art studies at the age of sixteen under the guidance of noted Dutch painter, Antonius Raemaekers. Cortez has a solid fine arts background, having graduated from the Herron School of Art in Indianapolis and studied at the Art Students League of New York.

Sporting Art
Beginning in 1977, Jenness Cortez received international acclaim for her sporting paintings and her masterful depictions of the Saratoga racing tradition. Capturing the subtle complexities of the sporting scene takes more than the ability to render the painstaking likeness of a horse. It requires keen observation and a mastery of composition. Like George Stubbs and Frederic Remington, she is first and foremost, an excellent draftsman.

Hudson River Tradition And Portrait Commissions
Today, in the tradition of the 19th century Hudson River School painters, Cortez's representations of the phenomenal world are sensitive, passionate and deeply moving. Regardless of subject --- landscape, human or animal, the work of Jenness Cortez exhibits a mystical ability to capture the soul of her subjects and to communicate poetically the essence of the moment and the place. Cortez breathes the spirit of life into all she chooses to depict.

Streets of Europe
Most recently, Cortez has broadened the scope of her subject matter to include the towns and villages of Europe. For those who cherish fond memories of a European vacation, or who hold a deep desire to visit, the new Cortez paintings depict the delights of another world. Her love of the quiet and the beautiful, combined with her respect for the underestimated power of our everyday thoughts and activities, lend a dimension of magic to these invitingly romantic scenes.

Over the years, Jenness Cortez has become one of the most sought after artists in the world. Her paintings hang in numerous public and private collections including those of Presidents Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton, HRH Queen Elizabeth, II, Mr. Edgar Bronfman, Ms. Virginia Kraft Payson, Ambassador True Davis, Mr. Henry Kravis, Mr. Ogden Mills Phipps, Mrs. Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney, Gov. George Pataki, Gov. Hugh Carey, Mr. Sandy Treadwell, New York State Museum, The Fluor Corporation, Saratoga Harness, Inc., Skidmore College and SUNY Empire State College.

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