Jennifer Rolli
by Michele Malinchak
In the words of William Shakespeare, “It is a wise father who knows his own child.” As a child, artist Jennifer Hansen Rolli had a father who recognized her exceptional talent and encouraged it to thrive. From him she learned the fundamentals of painting and those early lessons laid the groundwork for her impressive career in the arts.
Her fondest memories are those of painting with her father. Omar Hansen worked as a mechanical engineer but dabbled in art on the side. Aware of his daughter’s artistic abilities, he gave her an oil painting set when she was around eight. They became kindred spirits exploring the Bucks County countryside for places to paint. Omar taught her the basics about color and light how to quickly capture images without getting mired in details. “There was a great looseness about his work which I carry with me today,” she said.”
She vividly recalled when her father entered her work in an art show competition in Yardley open to all ages. The work was hung ‘clothes line style’ and she was thrilled to win the small cash prize for first place. It reinforced her love of art and further instilled confidence in her abilities.
Today Jennifer is a prolific painter inspired by the everyday beauty around her and the people she knows. Her subjects include landscapes, seascapes, interior scenes and portraits. She also enjoys painting livestock and water features like the Delaware River and Canal. Her landscapes are never static and her vigorous brushstrokes bring a freshness and vitality to her work.
“When I’m taking too long on a piece and laboring over it I know something’s not right,” she said.
Though her early painting lessons were plein air, Jennifer prefers working in her studio from photographs. She paints on canvas, Masonite and clay coated museum board, always tinting her backgrounds with different colors. At times she’ll do preliminary sketches but generally sketches directly on canvas with her brush. To improve flow and drying time she uses Liquin, a paint additive.
Following in the tradition of Bucks County Impressionists, she’s inspired by painters William Lathrop and John Folinsbee, but especially admires French Impressionist Édouard Vuillard.
In the relatively short span of 11 years that she’s been painting seriously, she has quickly evolved into a recognized artist with collectors both here and abroad. Locally the Golden Pheasant Inn in Erwinna has acquired a number of her paintings. Briar Mewbourne, an employee at the inn, said, “We get so many positive comments about them from our guests. They are peaceful and beautifully capture the colors of Bucks County. Bowman’s Glaze is my personal favorite—the painting of light on the Delaware River is magical.”
But her talent shines brightest in her intimate portraits of children. They remind one of artist Mary Cassatt in her ability to connect with the viewer on a deeply emotional level. For example, in the painting Letting Go, Jennifer captures a toddler gingerly taking his first steps while letting go of his mother’s hands. In the portrait entitled, Still A Girl, a pale golden light gives radiance to a young girl standing near a crystal candelabrum. In other works like “Sister Stories” she warmly depicts her own daughters reading in their bedroom.
The youngest of five children, Jennifer was born in 1964 in Bluffton, Indiana near Fort Wayne. The family moved to Yardley, PA when she was four. Her mother Carol was very musical and taught piano lessons out of her home. But her real passion was to sing opera and every Wednesday she traveled to New York City to take voice lessons. Occasionally she would even perform in off Broadway operas that were attended by Jennifer’s father.
“There was always havoc in the house,” Jennifer said. In addition to the frequent flow of students to the house, there were two brothers who each wrestled with issues of substance abuse and schizophrenia. Her father’s painting excursions served as a brief respite from the chaos at home. “He was a hothead at home but always calm when he painted.” Still, she fondly remembers going on numerous family outings and camping trips in their red and white VW van.
She became especially close to her brother with schizophrenia and recalled visiting him while he was hospitalized. “I had a Jeep with the top down and took him for a ride. When I saw his hair blowing in the breeze and how happy he was, I wondered how I could have been so self-conscious about him when I was younger.”
Jennifer attended Pennsbury High School and took several art classes there graduating in 1982. She went on to study at Kutztown University and in 1986 received her bachelor of fine arts degree in Communication Arts. She credits the school for giving her the foundation that eventually helped her transition to fine art. “My professors were wonderful and I learned so much from them,” she said.
For a brief time after graduating she worked in New York doing packaging design at a boutique design firm. She recalled airbrushing boxes for a fragrance by designer Diane von Furstenberg and the exacting scrutiny of the work. “I spent hours trying to get it right and it still wasn’t good enough.”
She met an art agent who taught her how to do surface design used in fabrics and became skilled at producing repeat patterns. Eventually she started her own business in Philadelphia, Hansen Design, which she ran for 15 years. Some of her many clients included Comcast, River Horse Brewing Company and Ibanez Guitars. Her designs and illustrations were often published in magazines such as Communication Arts, Graphis and Print. As her business grew she applied for a $10,000 business loan to buy computers, software programs and a printer. She had college interns who worked for her and said, “They often knew more about computers than I did. I learned from them.”
After her third child was born, she grew tired of graphics and longed to paint again. Though she painted occasionally while running her business, it was never enough. The family lived in Wynnewood at the time and moved to Maryland for two years before settling in Newtown in 2001. After she received a quality easel from her husband as a gift, she began painting in earnest.
“My first paintings were much thinner and flatter,” she said. She sought out galleries that would show her work and in 2004 began exhibiting at the Bucks Gallery of Fine Art in Newtown. At her first group show she sold three of her four small paintings in one night. The gallery has since closed but its owner, Jim Steen, opened a new gallery called Bridge Street House in Lambertville, NJ.
Jennifer left the gallery in 2008 and tried selling her work on her own. Her commercial art background proved valuable in the marketing end. For about three years she would contact realtors for permission to use vacant homes and farms as venues for her exhibits. It was at one of these homes in Newtown where she was approached by gallery owner and philanthropist Herman Silverman who had seen a photograph of her work. He asked her to join the Silverman Gallery in December 2010 and in March 2011 when it opened Jennifer became one of the core artists.
“After trying to sell work on my own, I realize what’s involved and how much time and energy go into it,” she said.
Always looking for new ways to spark her interest, she likes to experiment with different ideas. Recently she began writing and illustrating children’s books, something she’s always wanted to do. Her first book, Just One More, was published in 2014 and is based on real life experiences from raising her own children. It tells the story of a girl named Ruby who can never get enough of anything until she finally reaches her limit. “At first the illustrations were done digitally,” Jennifer said, “but then my editor suggested I paint them in oils.”
Jennifer squeezes in work on her books whenever she can. “When I drop my daughter off at ballet studio, I’ll stay and do sketches and even some writing there.” Curious onlookers often peek over her shoulder to see what she’s working on. A second book, Claudia and Moth is in the works and she also plans to illustrate a book for another author. “I need to have a lot of books going at once because the publishing process takes so long,” she said.
Another recent accomplishment was becoming the cover artist for both Bucks County Magazine and the new MONTCO Homes, Gardens and Lifestyle magazine. She painted the fall cover for MONTCO and will paint her first cover for Bucks County Magazine this spring.
Married for 21 years, she and her husband Anthony reside in Newtown with their three children: Pierce, Greta and Mia. All three of her children are creative and have been nurtured to develop their own talents in music and art. The challenge of balancing motherhood with a career is never easy and Jennifer paints during the day when the children are at school. Pierce is away at college, and with only two children at home and one heading off to school next year Jennifer hopes she won’t have too much time on her hands.
Additionally, Jennifer teaches art once a month for a Sunday school class at Newtown United Methodist Church. For the past seven years she’s also been a member of the Phillips’ Mill Art Committee.
She believes that anyone can paint if the desire is there. Occasionally faced with creative blocks, she’s always anxious to get back in the studio and try again. “I think,” she said, “when one grows up the youngest of five there are few boundaries—the freedom of trial and error. I don't mind trying to figure out how to do something well.”
From December 5th through January 18 there will be a solo exhibition of her paintings at the Silverman Gallery in Buckingham. Her work is also represented by the Beacon Shortwave Gallery in Stone Harbor, New Jersey and at the East End Gallery in Nantucket, Massachusetts. To see more of her art, visit jenniferhansenrolli.com or silvermangallery.com.
Michele Malinchak is a freelance writer and avid gardener from Quakertown, PA.