About
Jessica Malatia is a visual artist based in Evanston, Illinois. She is a graduate of Loyola University Chicago, where she studied psychology, drawing, and painting. Her work has been shown in group exhibitions at The Martin, Woman Made Gallery, and Ralph Arnold Gallery. She is currently expanding her portfolio with hopes of further developing her work and experience as an artist.
She can be contacted below, or through her Instagram, @paintedtravels.
Artist Statement
My work analyzes the relationships between nostalgia, memory, and identity. I utilize toys and collectibles as motifs to examine collecting as a form of solidifying memories and of self-expression. I make drawings and oil paintings that recontextualize common collectors’ items, which allows me to commemorate and critique these objects. The process of rendering collectibles serves as my own act of preservation; one that mirrors the preservative nature of collecting in the first place. Items like troll dolls or pinback buttons embody nostalgia, so this process allows me to manipulate and examine nostalgia’s value and emotional power. By placing mass-produced objects in monumental settings, I immortalize them and draw attention to the role they play in their owner’s identity.
Contact
CV
Education
Loyola University Chicago - Chicago, IL
B.S. Psychology, Minor Drawing and Painting, 2018
Fairs & Markets
2024
1/14/24 - Thick Mall - The Ramova Theater, Chicago, IL
1/24/24 - Free, Safe, and Legal - Dorothy Downstairs, Chicago, IL
2023
3/5/23 - Windy City Made Spring Gala - Stan Mansion, Chicago, IL
3/12/23 - I Heart Indie Makers Market - Navigator Taproom, Chicago, IL
3/26/23 - Vintage House Chicago - Emily Hotel, Chicago, IL
5/21/23 - Thick Mall - Sleeping Village, Chicago, IL
6/1/23 - Thursday Night Market, Evanston, IL
6/10/23 - Queer Market hosted by Evanston Pride - SPACE, Evanston, IL
7/20/23 - Pridewalk Sale hosted by Evanston Pride - Evanston, IL
7/22/23 - LGBT Artist Series - Ponnopozz, Chicago, IL
9/30/23 - 10/1/23 - Apple Fest - Lincoln Square, Chicago, IL
11/11/23 - I Heart Indie Makers Market - Koval Distillery, Chicago, IL
11/18/23 - I Heart Indie Makers Market - MobCraft Brewing, Milwaukee, WI
11/25/23 - Vintage House Chicago - The Schoolhouse, Chicago, IL
12/10/23 - I Heart Indie Makers Market - Revolution Brewing, Chicago, IL
2022
1/22 - 8/22 - Prints, Postcards, and Paintings for Sale at Prairie Avenue Gallery, Evanston, IL
5/19/22 - Arts & Craft Beverages Crawl, Main-Dempster Mile, Evanston, IL
7/8/22 - Thursday Night Market, Evanston, IL
8/4/22 - Thursday Night Market, Evanston, IL
12/18/22 - Windy City Made Holiday Market - Stan Mansion, Chicago, IL
2021
10/16/21 - Downtown Evanston Fall Fest Market, Evanston, IL
8/7/21 - Evanston Made Maker’s Market - Maple Ave. Parking Garage, Evanston, IL
Group Exhibitions
2023
1/23-2/23 - Soul Food - Side Street Studio Arts, Elgin, IL
11/23-12/23 - Prints! Prints! Prints! - The Martin, Chicago, IL
2021
6/21 - Evanston Made Group Show - Evanston Art Center, Evanston, IL
3/21 - 4/21 - Community Art Gallery - Coffee Lab & Roasters, Evanston, IL
2020
11/20 - 12/20 - Winter Arts & Crafts Expo - Evanston Art Center, Evanston, IL
05/20 - Still Relevant online exhibition - Happy Gallery, Chicago, IL
2019
10/19 - 12/20 - Alumni Show - Ralph Arnold Gallery, Chicago, IL
09/19 - 10/19 - Show Your Paper - Woman Made Gallery, Chicago, IL
04/19 - Strange Fevers: Mass Delusions, Confusions, and Obsessions - Columbia College Library & Aesthetics of Research, Chicago, IL
2018
09/18 - Open (No Theme) - Light Space Time, Lightspacetime.art
Special Merit Award category and Painting & Other Media category
06/18 - 07/18 - Pride and Prejudice: Gender Realities in the 21st Century - ARC Gallery, Chicago, IL Juried by Oli Rodriguez
02/18 - Student Art Competition - Ralph Arnold Gallery, Chicago, IL Juried by Jessica Cochran
2017
12/17 - You Are What Keeps You Up at Night - Loyola University Chicago, Chicago IL
11/17 - 2/18 - Student Show at Argo Tea - Loyola University Chicago, Chicago IL
01/17 - Student Art Competition - Ralph Arnold Gallery, Chicago IL Juried by Jeff Stevenson and Matthew Terdich
2016
01/16 - Student Art Competition - Ralph Arnold Gallery, Chicago IL
Projects & Panels
2019
04/13/19 - Artists & Scholars Colloquium - Columbia College Library & Aesthetics of Research, Chicago, IL
Panelist, in conjunction with Strange Fevers exhibition
2018
02/18 - Howardena Pindell Art World Surveys - Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago IL
Conducted and compiled research for Art World Survey reports, a part of the Howardena Pindell: What Remains To Be Seen exhibition