Work of RSF's colorful mosaic sculptor Jean Wells recognized at San Diego Museum of Art
By Lee Schoenbart
Like
father, like daughter. But with a twist.
Her father, Thomas Winchester Wells, an internationally-known artist, created the acclaimed apse of St. Demetrois Greek Orthodox Church in Seattle he called "Madonna and Child."
She, a recognized and successful sculptor in the mosaic medium in her own right, wants to design "a high-rise hotel in the shape of a lipstick."
This is the highly colorful and creative world of Rancho Santa Fe resident Jean Wells, who began her mosaic art career as an apprentice to her father when she was 12 years old. Wells permitted his daughter to work on the backgrounds of the "Madonna and Child" after school.
"I never got to work on any of the figurines. I usually just did the background, but he taught me a lot about mosaics," said Wells of her father who died in March 2004. "I was the one that showed the most promise - in terms of art - in the family, so I would come home from school and he'd put me to work."
She referred to the "Madonna and Child" project as "huge" and said it took more than two years to complete. As a tribute, and perhaps a daily reminder, Wells' e-mail address contains "wellsart" in its name.
"That's where it comes from," she said. "That's my nickname."
Everything Wells makes is mosaic glass, blending familiar icons from the era of 1955 to 1965 into life-size and, more often that not, larger-than-life-size pieces that evoke commentary mixed with laughter and awe.
On Nov. 4, Wells enjoyed recognition for her work at the San Diego Museum of Art.
Oh my gosh," she said of the evening. "It was overwhelming and exceeded my expectations. It was standing room only. It was kind of my debut.
"I think what is most fun for me is that I want to put a smile on people's faces when they see my art, and there was a lot of laughter. Everybody was smiling," she said. "I did not see a face that was not amused."
And what's not to be amused about when film and TV actress Geena Davis is caught hugging a 9-foot-tall sculpture of a cow rising from an ice cream cone.
"When I designed that piece, I was looking at cows that produce milk and they have ameba-like spots that look like chocolate when it's on ice cream," Wells explained. "And since the cows produce the milk, which creates the cream, which the cream creates the ice cream...
"I took the ice cream out of the freezer and poured chocolate on it and I said, 'This is it!' The piece was born."
To complement the wow-factor of her art, the sculptor's menu featured mini versions of the era - tiny hot dogs, hamburgers, pizzas and Hostess-style cupcakes.
"It was a contradiction in scale," Wells said. "You look at the tiny, tiny hors d' oeuvres and the huge, huge sculptures, which made everything more exaggerated. I like very, very small things and very, very large things."
To the chagrin of many of Wells' friends who did not make it to the museum, the showing was one night only.
"The reason I'm doing the private one is because a lot of people naturally assumed following an artist's reception that the collection stays on for a week, so a lot of people are pretty upset that they weren't able to get down there for that show on that particular night.
"I got 100 phone calls actually after that," she said. "So I'm doing a private showing for those that missed it."
It's not as though she needed to offer these friends and fans of her work any inducement to come to her home Nov. 29, when Wells shared, "I'm working on a piece right now, which will be a surprise for my next show on the 29th and that one will be about 16.5 feet tall."
Among the collection is a nod to the Bell System's princess phone of the 1960s, a gold mosaic version with a receiver the size of a small child. Then there's an ice cream sundae in a 5-foot-tall silver tulip cup. Her candy dish is filled with Hershey's Kisses, each one nearing one foot in height and diameter.
Wells is currently crafting "The Fish Bowl," a silver-mirrored mosaic toilet with a snorkel-masked face surfacing. The bowl is filled with water as goldfish swim around the face. Perhaps the "Ice Cream Moosaic" is the 16.5 -foot-tall surprise she is working on.
In between her art pieces, Wells has always found time for philanthropic endeavors. Last year she created the highly successful 2007 "American Heroes" calendar to raise money for those injured during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Sadly, she was rebuffed by the Navy for a 2008 calendar.
"I asked ABC-TV's 'Bachelor,' who is a lieutenant in the Navy and a triathlete, and we conversed for months trying to get it arranged and get the approval and the Navy said, 'No, I'm sorry; not this year.'"
However, Wells is going to try again next year for 2009.
They gave me some tips on what I could do in order to make it happen," she said of her conversation with Navy officials. "I might make it an all-athlete, all-armed services calendar that they would approve. They just didn't want the 'hunky' calendar."
Funds raised from the 2007 calendar benefited the Freedom Is Not Free organization started by David Dominguez.
"It helps amputees, people with head injuries or suffering from post-traumatic stress," Wells said. "We helped a lot of people. It was an absolutely incredible success.
"One thing that's very important to me," she said, "everything that I make and sell now with my art, I donate to charity."
In order to be able to pursue her own dreams of becoming the successful fine artist she is now, Wells noted that years earlier she worked in graphic design, commercial art and advertising to supplement her passion.
She said, "I think the difficult thing about being a fine artist is that there is a period of starving, but you need to pursue your dreams and your passions, because that is what's going to bring the most happiness.
And Wells is as passionate about her mosaic sculpting as ever.
"Now with the kids out of the nest, my daughter's 22, my son is 20, and sadly enough, my parents have passed, time is available to do my passion day and night, just working. I love it.
"I wake up every morning and go 'Oh boy, I get to do my art!'"
To learn more, visit www.wellsart.com. To lean more about the calendar and Freedom is Not Free, visit www.freedomisnotfree.com.