Artist BIO

Jaclyn Trecartin McAdam has been creating artwork since she can recall.  She had planned on a post-secondary career in the creative field, but history called her.  Academics allowed her to explore this, and helped cultivate her long-term perspective. Her undergraduate degree (University of New Brunswick, Saint John, 2006), a Bachelor of Arts, allowed her to focus on themes within art history and offered insight into a repertoire of techniques, media, and purpose art may be influenced by.  Her Honour Thesis examined politics and art (Anti-Catholicism and anti-Jacobitism in pro-whig prints : an iconographic study from the Glorious Revolution to the Gordon Riots, 2006).

She sees patterns and cycles stretched over time, and this informs her art.  She found herself drawn to the helping fields.  First as a teacher (Bachelor of Education, University of New Brunswick, 2008), and then psychotherapy (Masters of Education in Counselling Psychology, University of New Brunswick, 2012). She has run a private therapy practice in the Saint John area since 2014. The years she has spent in session with clients have caused her to believe resolutely in the strength of the human species. She believes we do best when we honour our true values, and nurture our spirit, mind, and body.

She lives connected to nature, and often finds herself starting and ending a piece aligned with the moon’s phases. Every piece she creates begins with an intention and she seeks to allow her intention to materialize into a coherent piece.  She utilizes a mixed media approach, with a heavy leaning on acrylics.  She is currently exploring what she calls “painting with light,” using reflective media to bring light into her pieces.

She has studied and taught principals of art, and her ability to synthesize the concepts of colour theory, linear theory, composition, texture, and dimension into her abstracts is well-recognized.  She is enjoying the process of sharing her artistic ability to an extended audience at this stage in her art career. The technical aspects she has learned, have come from a self-directed curriculum of workshops, classes, consultation with other artists, and experimentation.

She works and lives alongside the Wolastoq/Saint John River in New Brunswick, Canada, creating art in her home studio.  This allows a continual integration of her creative practice into her family life.  Jaclyn has exhibited with groups since her teenage years, and held her first Solo Show, Portways For Our Children(May-June 2024) in Saint John via Third Space Gallery.

Be clear, be confident, and don’t overthink it. The beauty of your story is that it’s going to continue to evolve and your site can evolve with it. Your goal should be to make it feel right for right now.