Jo Ophardt
Jo Ophardt, 'Flowers on Snoopy Fabric', 2025, oil on board, 35.6 x 40.6cm
The flowers in Jo Ophardt's still lives are picked on walks from their apartment to their studio. The gardens in Deering, Maine are a carefully controlled cartoon version of the forests that used to be there. Painting these flowers on top of a cartoon dog doubles the removals and imitations of nature that make up their daily experience of the world.
Jo Ophardt moved from Arizona to Portland, Maine to attend Maine College of Art and Design and graduated in 2025 with a BFA in Painting. They found New England to be quite agreeable. Their work has been shown in 'Familiar Faces' a duo show at the 49 Oak St Gallery and 'Artistic Muscles', a group show at 440 gallery in Brooklyn.