Jane Poynter 
Art & Design




Welcome!

        I am a craftswoman, artist, creative lead and builder currently living in Burbank, California.  Since I was a little girl, I have had many different creative expressions, and love working with a variety of materials and techniques.  My love for art, design, and architecture started at a very young age.  I have experience with many art forms including fine woodworking, painting, welding, printmaking, ceramics, landscape design, sculpture, and more.  I have also been a farmer and herbalist, am an avid traveler, and am a dog mom to sweet Matilda who you will see in several photos of my work.

        My artwork was always especially wild, and became more process-oriented and experimental throughout college and the years after.  I grew moss on paintings, painted over melting snow, allowed work to rust in the rain, installed outdoor earth art works, created patinas, printed on unusual materials, and more.  Simultaneously, I was studying art history and architecture, which included studies in Florence, that made me appreciate true mastery of craft and technique.

        In recent years, my work has moved farther into those two directions as my client work (Burning Man and public art fabrication, creating art for Meow Wolf) has gotten even more wild in concept, materials and scale; and my personal work has become more highly refined and focused on technique.  While taking fine woodworking courses at College of the Redwoods years back, I fell in love with woodturning.  As a turner who works with freshly-salvaged wood, I am not only carving functional art, but also carefully managing the drying process, which can be difficult and varies greatly according to the tree species and the climate.  Especially when using locally salvaged trees, this process creates an intimate connection to my environment that I love.  For me it’s a way of creating process-oriented, experimental work that is functional and has a refined aesthetic.  It ties together my love of art and love of nature. 

        Straw marquetry has also captured my focus recently, as I love the exacting process of creating a shimmering, geometric finish with a natural material.  It is such a unique and captivating finish that elevates any piece it is added to.  I find the process to be meditative and relaxing, and the perfect balance to the energetic and collaborative process of building large-scale art.

        I am now developing concepts for scaling up my work from decor to furniture, and for combining some of my more experimental work from the past with more traditional techniques and materials.  I am continuing with my woodturning and straw marquetry, and plan to add more metal casting and fabrication into my workflow, along with more traditional woodworking processes.  I look forward to creating more artwork that honors its materials, is focused on sustainability, and elevates the space that it lives in.