Jody Valmassy

Born in the late 1950’s and being raised in the small California mountain town of Mammoth Lakes, Jody had a childhood filled with outdoor activities and changing seasons. She started skiing at the age of six and spent many hours playing in the snow during the long winters. In the summer, she and her family often went backpacking, camping and picnicking in the backcountry wilderness. As she explored her surroundings, her artist’s eye caught the brilliant and subtle colors of spring, summer and fall and the stark contrast of winter’s snow covered landscapes. Jody was captivated by the patterns and textures of nature. These scenic patterns have been the inspiration for so many of the artistic pieces that she has created.

Growing up, Jody’s family owned and ran a retail sporting goods store where she was introduced to all aspects of the business. Working directly with the public, buying, inventory and accounting instilled a solid work ethic and business knowledge that has proved invaluable to Jody’s art career.

Through the last years of high school, Jody participated in art classes where she experimented with pen and ink, watercolor and acrylic paints, chalk and oil pastels, drawing with charcoal, colored pencils and graphite, working with clay and metal. Her inborn talent coupled with an inherent understanding of the arts had her excelling at a fast pace and graduating top of her class in art.

“I was so fortunate to have the opportunity to go on a fabulous art trip for two weeks up and down the California coast. The experience of plein air painting and diversity of subjects and materials was exponential to my future career as an artist.”

Directly out of high school, Jody moved to a southern California coastal town in North County, San Diego. She studied fine art, illustration and graphic design at Palomar Art College further developing her painting, drawing and compositional skills.

Jody was commissioned for a number of sign projects ranging from painted wood and plexiglass to storefront windows. She learned the art of sandblasting redwood signs which she designed and detailed with hand painted scenes of the local area. The redwood signs transitioned to sandblasting designs on glass. Inspired by this new medium, she started a business creating decorative glass projects, both in fine art designs as well as graphic commercial applications.

“It’s quite like airbrushing on glass,” Jody recalls. “Depending on how the sand is sprayed, a fine gradation can be achieved leaving the completed piece with very delicate and intricate details of soft white on a clear background.”

By the early 1990’s, Jody had a young family. She and her husband decided to sell her glass business and move with their two sons to a small town in the southern California mountains. She found herself drawn toward painting once again, missing the excitement of working with color.

Jody had a number of clients who had asked about hand painted murals and custom specialty finishes for their homes and businesses. Along with being a full time wife and mother, she flawlessly emerged into the next phase of her art career. She was commissioned to paint large wall murals ranging from people and animals to landscapes and architecture including painting the Lincoln Monument set for the television show, Jeopardy. At the same time, she applied her creativity to a line of beautifully painted furniture pieces combining landscape scenes, faux finishes and natural wood which are greatly admired by collectors throughout California. “I have grown tremendously by painting murals these last 20 years,” Jody reveals. “People have such different ideas of what they want in their environments. It pushed me to paint a diverse array of subjects, enhancing my abilities and confidence.”

Jody had been approached by numerous people about teaching her painting and drawing techniques. By the late 1990’s and early 2000’s, she was holding workshops introducing people to the many artistic mediums familiar to her. She described her approach to drawing and painting, how to look for light and shadow, creating textural designs and developing compositional skills. Working with her students to connect with what they see and then applying it to paper and canvas was a fun challenge and helped Jody articulate and appreciate a deeper understanding of her artistic process.

Today, Jody is enjoying applying paint to canvas. As her career progresses and unfolds, she is inspired by using new painting materials and techniques. Changing her approach to fine art paintings, she has been letting go of her realistic style, emerging into an abstract phase and trusting the process of creative inspiration.