Jennifer Pereira

Portuguese/Canadian LGBTQ artist.
Born in Toronto, ON. Lives & works in Cobalt, ON CANADA

Jennifer Pereira is a maker/artist and avid outdoor enthusiast who looks to capture the majesty of nature in her large scale oil paintings, sketches and mural work. Living in small town Cobalt Ontario she finds inspiration in the surrounding natural landscapes as well from the people who call this place home. As of 2021 Jenifer has been a founding and active member of CAYAC (Cobalt & Area Young Artist Collective) which aims to support and inspire like minded artists to create! Her latest series ‘Dryads’ looks at the relationship between man and nature, more specifically trees. Dryads are tree spirits with shapeshifting abilities, possessing the form of a young woman. The female form is one which has dominated many genres of art and in this series Jennifer tries her hand at incorporating the female nude into her landscapes. The nymph-like figures are found basking in natural settings, informing dynamic compositions within the landscape. These works challenge ideas of land and land ownership and humanity's ever evolving relationship with mother nature (including ‘fads’ like Forest Bathing) and forests/trees as a natural resource vs. living ecosystem.
When asked “what type of art do you make and why do you make it?” Mrs. Pereira said; I recognize my normal everyday is some peoples “once in a lifetime”. When choosing to settle in the small town of Cobalt I did so to be able to raise my family close to nature. On walks I can stumble upon pine martens, otters, eagles and loons and it is nothing out of the ordinary. I have always loved animals and as an artist feel that it is my job to immortalize them in my art. I hope that my art can help people appreciate the world we live in and help advocate for creatures and places which don’t have a voice of their own.” Jennifer’s 2021/22 works featured in her show ‘Ecology’ depicted a variety of animals(fish, birds and mammals) within their natural environment, highlighting local marsh, river and lake ecosystems.
Jennifer has a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Queens University where she majored in oil painting and printmaking. Jennifer has shown works of a variety of mediums in group and juried shows at the La Cloche Art Show in Whitefish Falls, Agnes Etherington Art Centre in Kingston, Robert McLaughlin Gallery in Oshawa, Temiskaming Art Gallery in Haileybury and in online virtual exhibitions.