Jade Andersen is a contemporary visual artist working and living in Sydney’s Northern Beaches. Graduating with a Bachelor OF Fine Arts (BFA) in 2024 from the National Art School, Jade is actively refining her artistic practice whilst working in the arts, as an art instructor at Make Your Mark Art, Brookvale and recently as a Gallery Assistant at Michael Reid Northern Beaches​​​​​​​.

Jade works in a combination of photography and printmaking, specialising in hyper-realistic, large scale screen prints, exploring themes of the fragility and complexity of the human form. Jade is currently a Northern Beaches Studios tenant at Curl Curl Creative Space. 

How long have you been a resident of Northern Beaches Studios, and how has having access to the studio at the Creative Spaces aided your work?

I’ve been a Northern Beaches Studios tenant since February this year, and having a dedicated creative space has completely changed how I work. After graduating from the National Art School in 2024, I struggled to keep my process-driven practice going at home with too many distractions and not enough room to spread out. Finding the studio gave me the freedom to work on a larger scale, spread out, and immerse myself fully in experimentation. 

The studio has given me the freedom to work on a much larger scale; to pin up prints, test prints side-by-side, and let works-in-progress breathe in the space while I return to them over time. It’s given me the space to immerse myself fully in experimentation and push ideas further than I could before.

How often do you come and work in the studio?

I work just around the corner from the studio in the afternoons, so I try to come in at least three days a week, usually from morning through to the afternoon. The flexibility of having this space means I can adapt my studio time to fit around my schedule. Some weeks are more productive than others, and that’s the beauty of it. The studio is always there, ready for me to step in and focus when I can. It’s a place I can return to without pressure, which keeps my practice sustainable and enjoyable. 

What does the next 12 months look like for you – any exhibitions or shows scheduled?

Over the coming months, I’ve got a few things I’m really excited about. In October, I was part of a local show called “Emergence Exhibitions” run by a local artist, Lily Power. It’s such a cool opportunity for young artists to connect and show their work. Beyond that, I’m constantly creating, developing new projects, and applying for exhibitions and opportunities. 

Even when nothing is on display, there’s always something in progress. Waiting for responses can be challenging, but it also keeps me motivated and focused, and it gives me a lot to look forward to. Between planning, experimenting, and putting myself out there, the next 12 months are shaping up to be a really full and exciting period.

What are a few common themes or concepts that run through your work?

A recurring theme in my work is the relationship between the human body and the natural environment. I focus on how each element reflects, shapes, and transforms the other. I’m interested in the body not just as a physical form, but as a vessel for memory, ritual, and change seen through the natural environment as both a mirror and counterpart to those experiences. 

There is quite often an undercurrent of the cyclical; tides, seasons, breaths and rhythms that bind us to the environment. My work seeks to capture liminal moments where body and landscape dissolve into one another, creating a single continuous terrain as seen in my recent series of prints titled “Tide and Terrain”. 

How do you know when a work is finished?

To be honest, I don’t think a work is ever truly finished. There are always ideas that surface once I step back - ways I could shift elements, adjust, or push it further. That’s why certain images or motifs often reappear in different works, each time in a slightly altered form. But there comes a point where a piece needs to be left as it is. For me, it’s less about achieving perfection and more about reaching a sense of stillness, a moment when the work stops asking for more.

Explain a situation where you had to adapt your artistic vision to suit a specific audience or cultural context.

So far, I’ve been lucky enough to show my work in spaces where I’ve had a lot of creative freedom. But I’ve also had projects where I’ve needed to adapt my style, for example, working with bands and musicians to create single covers, such as AH HONEY. Those collaborations meant aligning with their vision and adapting my own practices and style to suit their sound and aesthetic, while still keeping my creative voice in the work. 

More recently, I have a local group show coming up with the theme “magic,” which has pushed me to experiment with busier, reflective surfaces like aluminum, something I’ve never used before. The material brings a sense of transformation and ritual that speaks to the theme, while still feeling authentic to my practice. I actually enjoy those boundaries; like Daniel Jack Lyons says, “My creative process thrives within boundaries and restrictions.” For me, adaptation is a lot of trial and error, but that’s the fun part, finding that sweet spot where the concept and my own style meet.