Penelope Jayne My Art Journey

Penelope Jayne My Art Journey

Penelope Jayne My Art Journey, artist statement and bio

Each painting begins as a whisper—and becomes a world.

My practice lives in the threshold between the seen and the unseen — a liminal space where intuition becomes language and symbols speak quietly through form. Working primarily in oils and mixed media, I create layered paintings for Penelope Jayne studio that feel both intimate and timeless, drawing on themes of memory, myth, and the quiet power of the Sacred Feminine.

Guided by the traditions of classical oil painting yet shaped by deeper symbolic narratives, my work explores awakening, healing, and inner sovereignty. Gold threads, birds, halos, petals, and submerged feminine forms appear throughout my paintings not as decoration, but as archetypal markers — subtle signposts pointing toward the inner worlds we sense but rarely name.

I have spent my life working creatively with light, colour and form. From an early age I was drawn to making things — painting, drawing, shaping clay, and creating visual worlds through imagination and material. Over the years this creative instinct found expression through many mediums, including oil painting, ceramics, mixed media and photography.

Working professionally in the visual arts expanded my understanding of composition, atmosphere and the behaviour of light. Whether creating paintings, styling scenes, or building sets for photographic work, the focus was always the same: translating an idea, a feeling, or a moment of beauty into a visual form.

The years spent exploring different creative disciplines have deepened my visual language and strengthened my sensitivity to light, colour and balance. These experiences now flow naturally into my paintings, allowing a lifetime of creative exploration to come together in works that celebrate light, reflection, water and the quiet poetry of the natural world.

My process is slow and layered. Atmospheric underpaintings, fluid marks, and evolving symbols guide the development of each piece. The work unfolds like a conversation — quiet, attentive, and responsive — revealing itself gradually as each layer finds its place.

Living by the sea on the Central Coast of New South Wales, the natural world shapes both my palette and rhythm. Corals, teals, soft whites and indigos drift into the paintings like reflections gathered from the shoreline.

Ultimately, I see painting as a form of invocation —
a way to reclaim forgotten feminine wisdom,
a way to soften the noise of the world,
and a way to offer beauty as a form of truth.

— Penelope Jayne

Professional Biography

Penelope Jayne is an Australian artist whose work explores light, water, and reflection through expressive oil painting and mixed media. Living and working on the Central Coast of New South Wales, she draws continual inspiration from the coastal landscape, where shifting tides, waterlilies, and luminous reflections shape her palette and visual language.

Before returning to painting, Penelope built an internationally recognised career as an advertising and fine art photographer, working across editorial, publishing, and the creative industries. Her commercial photography included assignments for major international brands such as Coca-Cola, Mercedes-Benz, Accor Hotel Group, Rendezvous Hotels, and the Maloney Hotel Group, alongside numerous editorial and advertising campaigns.

Her work has been exhibited across Australia and internationally, including cultural exchange exhibitions in Shenzhen, China, where she was part of one of the first Western artist groups invited to exhibit in the HoPing region.

Penelope’s photography has appeared in numerous publications including Vogue Living, Donna Hay, Gourmet Traveller, and Belle. Her work has received international recognition, including 2nd place globally in Digital Fine Art Photography at the International Photography Awards in New York, and she has been honoured with a Dean’s Honour Award from the University of Sydney and an Australia Day Award for her contribution to the creative industry.

Today Penelope’s focus has returned to painting, where the visual language developed through decades of photography continues to shape her work. Years spent studying light, composition, styling, and working with models in the advertising and editorial industries have deeply informed her approach to painting.

This lifelong experience with visual storytelling allows her to translate the subtle qualities of light, atmosphere, and reflection into paint. The sensitivity to colour, balance, and mood developed through photography now emerges in expressive brushwork and layered surfaces, creating paintings that feel both luminous and immersive.

For Penelope, painting is not a departure from her previous work, but a natural evolution of a lifetime spent working creatively with light, form, and visual expression.

Achievements

  • Australia Day Award for contribution to the creative industry
  • Selected to exhibit in Shenzhen, China as part of the first Western cultural exchange in Southern China
  • 2nd in the World – Digital Fine Art Photography
    Professional Division – International Photography Awards, New York
  • Dean’s Honour Award – Design Science
    University of Sydney
  • Internationally published in magazines
  • Guest Speaker Sydney University, Western Sydney University & University of New South Wales
  • Workshop Presenter Temora Aviation Museum

Selected Exhibitions

2026 — Gnostic Exhibition, Woy Woy NSW
2026 — Women in Art Exhibition, Wyong Art House
2024 — Featured Artist Exhibition, Bay Gallery, Ettalong Beach NSW
2018-2023 — 20 × 20 Exhibition, Gosford Regional Art Gallery
2013 — Cancer Council Exhibition, Melbourne
2013 — Vivid Light Festival, Guest Speaker
2011–2013 — Head On Photo Festival, Sydney
2012 — Food for Thought Exhibition, Hazelhurst Regional Gallery, Gymea
              Opened by Margaret Fulton
2012 — Urban Culture Exhibition, University of Technology Sydney
2012 — Let Them Eat Cake, Momento Books Exhibition
2011 — Centennial Park Exhibition, Sydney
2011 — Paddington Art Centre, Head On Exhibition
2010 — Shoot the Chef Exhibition, Sydney Morning Herald
2004 — Rendezvous Hotel Exhibition, Singapore
2002 — University of Sydney Exhibition “Light”
2000 — RAW Exhibition, Ken Done Gallery, Sydney
2000 — Australian Cultural Exchange Exhibition
               Shenzhen & HoPing, China
             (First Western artists invited to exhibit in the HoPing region)
1996 — Nature Exhibition, Waverley Arts Centre, Sydney

Awards & Recognition

2nd Place World Division – Digital Fine Art Photography (Professional Division)
International Photography Awards, New York

Dean’s Honour Award – Design Science
University of Sydney

Australia Day Award – Contribution to the Creative Industry

Over 40 Honourable Mentions
International Photography Awards, New York

Professional Division Winner
Sydney Morning Herald “Shoot the Chef” Competition

Publications

Penelope Jayne’s work has appeared in numerous international and Australian publications including:

Vogue Living
Vogue 
Donna Hay
Gourmet Traveller
Belle Magazine
Delicious Magazine
New Idea
Women’s Weekly
Notebook Magazine
Spa Life
Pacific Pastry (New York & Singapore)
Drum Media
Hospitality Magazine
Sydney Morning Herald

Professional Roles

Vice President
Australian Commercial & Media Photographers (ACMP)

Guest Speaker & Lecturer
Sydney University
University of NSW
Western Sydney University
Ambassador & Judge
Sydney Institute
Photography Tutor
Temora Aviation Museum (2012–2017)