
Sophia Jortner…but from here on in, she need only be the artist known as Sophia.
She’s only 18. She and her twin sister just graduated from Easton’s public high school, and her sister is headed to the University of Chicago thinking pre-med or pre-law. Sophia says, “We’re complete opposites – and we’re best friends. I like that we don’t have to compete about anything, and support each other totally. I struggle with school, and things like math in particular. The thing I can do, is art.” Sophia and her sister live with their mom, who is a designer, and their 13-year old brother, who likes to play basketball and sometimes draws alongside Sophia.








She continues, “I want people to be interactive with my art. I want them to touch it, and be intrigued by the vision. I want my paintings to convey a deeper meaning, more than just look pretty. I’m interested in the themes of old money vs. new money, and fantasy vs. reality, and in the conflict between good and evil. …I have the view that there is beauty in all things. I’m trying to get to some of the deeper meanings in society – even if my commentary on society is only from the viewpoint of an 18-year old young woman.”

And about where she’s going, Sophia says, “I’m just beginning to do what I think I can do. Selling paintings has opened my eyes to really being an artist. Although selling work is not the most important aspect to me, it gives me such a feeling of validation because people are really resonating with what I am creating and willing to have my work in their homes, something that was hard to imagine when I first started.
I’m thrilled to be finished with high school, so I have all of my time to devote to my art. And I just committed to attend the Maryland Institute College of Art starting in September. I couldn’t be more excited about the opportunity to learn from MICA’s great professors and study the fine arts. My dream is to become the next ‘biggest artist’, do things like Banksy’s murals, and have my paintings in galleries all over the world.”
Strikingly, the quality of Sophia’s early works – and particularly given her lack of formal training – points to true, if nascent, artistic genius!
The Jean Jacobs Gallery will be exhibiting Sophia’s work from July 9th to August 8th, 2022.




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