Jan Sorenson Hill

Challenges. I love challenges! Every painting is yet another opportunity to learn new things about the magic of watercolor.

There is a childlike joy in being able to depict that particular animal’s fur or find the right color combo for an abstract. I am still surprised when I convey the emotions I felt by using various techniques. Sometime new equipment is the impetus to paint, sometimes the location cries out for representation. Beauty and mystery are constant inspiration. I continually reevaluate my focus with dramatic intensity of value. Creating design is definitely a challenge.

Barn quilts are fascinating artworks. Besides being so precise and so mathematical, the challenge is to create an exterior work of art that will hang for years in the elements. Now I work on various bases, not only wood, to lighten the art piece. Varying barn quilt sizes and designs is truly challenging.

Life interferes with the demand to paint every day!

However God gifted you to be creative, whatever challenges you, I hope you learn it and share it.

By exhibiting her artwork, Jan Sorenson Hill encourages others to express their creativity.

Through art, she depicts her cultural background, her Central IL roots, her German heritage and her femininity. Like many artists, she does not confine herself to one medium, though prefers to work in watercolors. Her strength is in portraiture and animals, although she loves to venture into magical realism and abstract. She is excited by bright colors, yet the subtle soft femininity of vignettes intrigues her.

Jan accomplished 3 different series of paintings; two on her family and one on racial injustices. One family series was assembled and published in a booklet. Jan received many awards through her affiliations with the Springfield Art Association and the Sangamon Watercolor Society. She was an Artist-In-Residence in Arizona & Illinois. Her artwork is on exhibit throughout Central IL.

Jan’s interest in art began as a young teenager. She continues experimenting with many different styles of art at workshops. She is currently assembling and detailing locations of barn quilts in Sangamon County.