by  Susan M. Rostan

I met Jennifer Jean Okumura, President of the Massachusetts Chapter of NAWA, on a sunny day in Cambridge, Massachusetts. We were picking up artwork from the NAWAMA exhibit, “We Are Not Women, We Are Gods,” at the Multicultural Arts Center when I saw her packing up her car, assisted by her son, Jonathan. We had spoken several times before the show when she graciously offered to transport my artwork to the site when the venue changed the drop-off day. My husband and I were so happy to have an opportunity to personally thank her for her help when we met in Cambridge.

We would have a lengthy conversation several months later, on November 29, 2023, when I interviewed her on Zoom for NAWA NOW. At that time, Jennifer discussed her personal life, including her son’s love for golf and art, and how her mixed Asian and Caucasian heritage has influenced her creative process. Jennifer shared her journey in the arts, from attending Syracuse University to becoming involved in setting up exhibition spaces for NAWA. She also provided an overview of the Massachusetts Chapter’s recent exhibitions, collaborations with other organizations, and NAWAMA’s scholarship program for female high school seniors pursuing fine arts. The following conversation has been edited for clarity.

Jennifer Jean Okumura (JO): “It’s been a busy summer, as you know. It’s been a busy year. My son is playing golf, and he golfs all the way to the first week in December. I’ve been out with him, and I have to say, while it’s freezing outside, it’s like the most joy just to be in nature. My work is inspired a lot by just being outside, and I’m with him. He’s one of my critics. I’ll know when a piece is done when I turn to him and ask him what he thinks. If I’m doing a show or something like that, I’ll ask him, “Between these two pieces, which one do you like better?” And he knows, right? Very quickly, he’ll say, “This one,” and I’ll ask, “Why? What is it about this one that strikes you?” He’s a great little guy!

Susan Rostan (SR): How old is your son?

JO: He’s nine.

SR: He’s had some art training just living with an artist.

JO: He has, and he loves it. I think that’s a nice idea; no matter what he does in life, I just want him to be able to appreciate art and realize how much art plays a role in everything.

SR: Does he make art, too?

JO: He used to paint with me. He still really loves doing crafts and drawing. I always see him sketching. We do enjoy collaborating on pieces. So, there’s a creative side to this little guy.

SR: Were you an artist as a child as well? Did it crystallize early for you?

JO: Well, it didn’t crystallize early for me. My mom is very creative. She used to put a huge piece of paper on a wall and let me go to town and draw on it. She’s a neat freak, so she had that paper there because she didn’t want me drawing on the walls. She let me explore but in a very confined and neat way. And I’m still that way as an artist. I’m not a messy artist. I can’t just leave everything out.

I’m also aware of the spaces that I’ve lived in. I’ve lived in a tiny condo and had to paint there. I have a studio, but I have two other studio mates, Sorin Bica and Ryan James McGrory. While both of them love the messy process, as do I, I am still confined. I like to keep things in an orderly kind of way, and my personality just kind of fits. I’m that way at home, too. I did get that from my mom.

She let me kind of run with it. That’s nice; that’s great, but it’s hard when you come from a mixed background. Being Asian and Caucasian, you’re an outsider. The Asian side wants you to be a doctor and have a concrete profession. I’ve always loved the mind. So, for me, the mind has always been something that I’m fascinated with. I would have gone into psychology or psychiatry if I weren’t in the arts and doing something creatively.

I didn’t realize until my junior year in high school that I wanted to be an artist. A visiting teacher came to my school. He was a commercial artist. By the way, I went to the same high school as Joe Biden. It was a very small high school in Willow Grove, Pennsylvania. We had a graduating class of 70 kids. The artist had us design advertising for a new restaurant that was opening. It was called Otto’s Restaurant, and many students made a German girl with beer cups. That was what actually won. My friend won, and I got 2nd place with something completely different than the girl with the jugs. Afterward, the teacher told me, “You should attend art school and take classes.” And I was surprised because I didn’t win. and because my school focused mainly on math and science and not on the arts. At the end of my junior and senior years, I took a lot of classes at Moore College of Art & Design in Philadelphia, where I fell in love with the arts.

The pivotal moment was having this visiting artist believe in me. He helped me fill out some scholarship forms, where I took terrific figure drawing classes. I would sketch anyone who would allow me. The Rodin Museum is right next to it, so I used to sketch the Rodin sculptures.

SR: You got a BFA at Syracuse University?

JO:  I did. For computer arts.

SR: And then?

JO: I love anime, especially Cowboy Bebop, which is a Japanese neo-noir space anime that drew me to computer art. It satisfied my family because I could make a career out of the arts. Then I fell in love with painting, and my professor and mentor, Jerome Witkin, introduced me to his paintings, which are a little bit on the darker side. My paintings are also on the darker side. He told me many people start sketching and stay very confined from that sketch. He advised me to start drawing, adding color, and running with it.

He was very influential in my work, although he was influenced by what was around him. The last work he did while teaching at Syracuse documented homeless people. He could take unfortunate reality like homelessness and turn it into beautiful art.

SR: Is that why you got your MFA in painting?

JO: Yes.

SR: Were other people at that time, classmates or a network within your studies, instrumental in your development?

JO: I’m still really close with my friend and computer arts classmate, Carey Otto, who designs websites. Quite a few other friends are illustrators, having chosen commercial art. But a lot of them have found other professions. When you’re an artist, sometimes it doesn’t always move along the same path as you hope, and so while they are still doing their art, they’re also doing other things. The path to and staying in the arts is not always clear.

There were some great professors at Syracuse University and in my MFA program at Boston University. Chris McCarthy taught a fantastic class in museum studies, and she was very influential in the sense that I saw a video in her class of North Adams being revived, and there was an artist in that video, Eric Rudd. We just did an exhibit over at the Berkshire Art Museum, and Eric Rudd is the one who runs it with his wife, so I met him. It’s funny how something you saw maybe in grad school turns into something that happens in real time.

SR: Are you involved in setting up exhibition space as Chapter President, or do you have somebody to do that?

JO:  When the Chapter was formed in 2013, my studio mates were Sorin Bica and Nella Lush, and Nella was just forming the Chapter. I was eight months pregnant and had just joined NAWA, and she said, “Why don’t you come? We’re going to do a meeting, and I’d love for you to join the Chapter.”

They needed someone to do exhibitions, and the woman they wanted fell through. So, I kind of ran with it. Sitting on the board, my biggest thing was going to venues. I love meeting people, seeing the artwork, and working with artists. I think it is probably one of my biggest joys. I still continue to do the exhibitions with a fantastic committee. I will most likely continue on the Exhibition Committee when I step down as President because I still enjoy that.

SR: How much more time do you have as President?

JO: We’re looking at somebody moving in after next year.

SR: What influenced your decision to take on the role of President?

JO: The second Chapter President, Kim Alemian, asked me. I initially declined because I was happy doing the exhibitions. And then she called me again, and we talked for a while, and she said, “I don’t see anyone else doing the position that I would feel comfortable with.” She joked and said she was not getting off the phone until I said, “Yes.” I didn’t think I was at the right stage of my life with a kid and everything. Kim thought it was just the opposite. She believed it was what the Chapter needed: to have somebody at my stage in life to move the Chapter forward, to continue her momentum. I hesitated to take it on, especially with a young family, because I was juggling many other things, and the Chapter needed more focused time. That was my main hesitation. Then Covid hit, and that’s when I became the President. That was a big jump, but Kim has been a fantastic friend, colleague, and sounding board. She and Nella have been wonderful, and Kim has continued designing all our ads for Artscope magazine.

We had three exhibitions when I became President. One had just been hung over at the Marblehead Art Association, and the public never saw it. The second show at the Atlantic Wharf went smoothly. It was up for about two weeks; luckily, many people saw it. Then, there was a third show at the SoWa Art and Design District, and unfortunately, that was also closed right away. It was very Biblical because the area also had a water main break. We got the artwork out as soon as we could get back into the building. We knew then that we had to quickly bring the shows online because they were amazing.

SR: That was a big transition then, going online?

JO: It was. Gallery Sitka’s owner, Tamar Russell Brown, was recommended for her art services by our membership chair. In 2023, Tamar celebrated 20 years as a woman-owned business in Shirley, Massachusetts. She opened a gallery in Newport, where we had our Newport show in the summer with another show planned for August. The collaborations that grow are what’s nice about this group. We also updated the Chapter website, and incorporated shops for sales into the website during COVID.

We have a fantastic scholarship Chair, Rosalie Cuticchia, who has a background in social work. She jump-started our scholarships. Currently, we have three scholarships for high school seniors who identify as female and plan to major in the fine arts in college. We have two $1,500 scholarships and one $1,000 scholarship underwritten by Aetna Corp, dedicated to Anita Helen Cohen for her passionate and invaluable contributions to the arts. They’re a patron of mine; I’ve decorated artwork in their headquarters in Cambridge, and they’ve been wonderful. They’ve helped install our shows. And that’s one of the things that I hope continues with this Chapter.

Most scholarship recipients are more local, but we’d love to expand this pool. Having had a scholarship to go to Moore College began my love for the arts. It could really change someone’s life.

The proud moments continue with Kim Alemian’s suggestion that we participate in the Transcultural Exchange’s 2022 International Conference on Opportunities in the Arts (Artists, residency directors, curators, collectors, arts administrators, and critics converged to attend programs focused on opportunities for artists). NAWAMA members spoke at the conference. We also brought in Artscope magazine, our sponsor, as a panelist. You really can’t do art alone. Creativity and collaboration are significant in making anything thrive, especially in the arts.

SR: I was impressed with the Chapter’s videos of artists at exhibitions. Is that something that you started as well during your term?

JO: It is. I have done the videos and enjoy doing them. For the Ambition exhibit, I asked the artist to send just a thirty-second video explaining what ambition meant to them and how their piece fit into the theme. From there, I created a movie to document every show. I foresee the Chapter continuing to have some form of documentation, whether from advertising, Artscope, or the artist’s recorded voice.

This Chapter is under the umbrella of NAWA’s national organization in New York, but it’s been nice to branch out and find where our footprints are a little bit, too. (NAWA President) Christie Devereaux and (Executive Director) Jill Baratta have been wonderful.

SR: How many members are in your Chapter?

JO: About 110.

SR: Since we’re discussing the Chapter the presidency, do you have any hopes for the next President?

JO: The most significant part about creating is staying positive. Unfortunately, we can lose ourselves in the negativity all around us. I’ve had members ask why they didn’t get into a show. We’ve all had the experience of not being accepted into a show. The juror and the director of the venue, or the gallery, usually like to have their hand in picking the artwork. We’ve noticed when we’ve dealt with many venues that they want a very cohesive-looking show. It’s more about what voice the juror is trying to portray than how good the artwork is. And that’s key because it’s never meant to say that the artwork could be better executed. It’s subjective. It’s about making a powerful and impactful show, and that’s the key. We’ve had that discussion a little more this year, and I always try to stay positive. I attempt to turn that question into a benefit and something you can overcome. We have overcome many challenges in the arts; it’s an endless journey. We can’t lose ourselves, focus on uncontrollable outcomes, and let self-doubt take hold.

I hope the next President will continue to grow the scholarships. I think having someone new come with their own outlook, perseverance, and whatever experience they have is essential. I’m just one peg in this NAWAMA Chapter, and I can’t wait to see what the next President will do with her own experiences, ideas, and momentum.

SR: How do you manage your work, volunteer, and family life? You still have a young child and are obviously involved in his after-school activities, so how do you find that balance?

JO: I don’t think about it too much. I just make it work in a way. It’s not going to work for everyone. I’ve been with my partner for 20 years, so having a solid partner base is crucial. That has been instrumental for me. It’s a balance thing, especially when we did shows a little further away this year and found that we had to return at a specific time to get my son. As much as I love creating art, my priority is my family. You’re okay with the rest if you have a strong family life.

SR: You’ve set priorities?

JO: I definitely do. For instance, we read together at night, and that’s one of the things we enjoy, reading with Jonathan. And we enjoy doing the math homework with Jonathan. You find the balance. I go golfing with Jonathan even though it’s freezing outside. I sit in the golf cart with him, and even though I’m freezing, I can’t imagine being anywhere else. You make it work.

I’ve changed my life. I was a night owl and turned into a morning person. I usually get up around 4:30 in the morning, which many people think is insane. I’ve also met some other creatives who are that way, especially poets. It’s so nice because no one’s awake, and I can catch up on writing things if I’m writing a proposal. Sometimes I paint then, and it’s really lovely because I need that extra time to paint and be in the zone. I don’t have to get Jonathan up until 7:45 a.m., which gives me quite a few hours to do something. You can get a lot done when no one else is awake.

SR: Have all these responsibilities, especially being Chapter President, affected your artwork?

JO: I think it has definitely affected my artwork. You feel like you’re almost mechanical when you’re painting because of the amount of time that you have. And so, I would love to get to a point where I could spend hours and not be on such a time crunch. But being Chapter President has focused me on what I really need to get done. As much as I want to do more experimental things, I focus on what works now.

What I’m really passionate about is the ongoing series of portraits. Being of mixed race, all my portraits are very nonbinary. So, they are not male or female. Sometimes, they focus on one or the other – you can tell a little bit, but usually, it’s every skin color. It’s this idea of being the same, having these familiar similarities but at the same time also being different. We can be looking at the same moon or sun in different locations. Even looking at the same object, we’re still different. That’s been an ongoing series for me, and I’ve been focused on that. And so, when I think of what’s helped me with the presidency, it focuses on what matters to me now.

I’ve enjoyed the people I’ve met in the Chapter and the conversations I’ve had. The Chapter not only helps artists creatively but also brings that community aspect. As for my studio in Boston, I question keeping that studio. I’ve been there for over a decade, where I met the Chapter’s co-founder, Nella and my studio mate, Sorin.

SR: Do you interact with your work? Do you have critiques with your studio mates or other members from NAWA?

JO: I do. Sorin has been one of my biggest influences on creating large works. I used to create works that would fit in my car. We’ve got a bigger car.  I drive a “mama’s van.” It can accommodate a 48” x 90” canvas. I enjoy painting large. Sorin will say things like, “I don’t know,” or “I don’t see where you’re going with this.” You can take it as a negative, but I accept it as a positive. He’s from Romania, and I grew up with a mixed family; they’re very blunt, and I like that bluntness. You know, you don’t need to sugarcoat anything. Having someone very honest in front of you saying, “I like where you’re going with this,” or “I don’t like where you’re going with this. Maybe try something.” So, I do have that critique.

SR: I see two threads in your body of work: portraiture and abstract landscapes. Do you have a different process for each thread?

JR: Actually, it’s the same process with both of them. I always start off with words. I’m keen on words. I’m enamored with poetry; poetry is like the core of human truth. You either love poetry because you love the truth, or you don’t love poetry. I think what artists bring to the canvas is the truth. I’m not someone who creates just by feelings. I create by sitting down and thinking of words. I write those words on the canvas and then think of images accompanying the piece. I also listen to the same type of music when I create a series. I am a creature of habit. So, for me, music changes my mood. I grew up in Philly, so I’m very much into hip-hop. I love classical music too. The color palettes I pick flow with the music and everything in the words. My works have gone from being soft to being dark. In some ways, it doesn’t reflect my personality. People are always surprised because they think I’m very upbeat, so I should be very flowery and make very colorful pieces. But we have both sides to us.

I do bring in my Eastern and Western heritage. This piece is called Unity, One World. It means we are united only on stage, and it is one of my favorite pieces I have in the studio. She greets you in the studio. I like experimenting with wood and adding that onto canvases. It’s not desirable for galleries, but I do like it for personal use, and I love faces that have a mask-like look. When I was talking about the nonbinary faces, they could be anyone. It has wood in it that represents the wood of the stage. It also represents the mask, and underneath it is Arabic. It goes back to this idea of being on stage, and for me, combining the Muse, the words aspect, and having the poetry on the canvas, it’s very much like a stage performance. There isn’t anywhere else in the world where we’re unified other than on a stage. The artist is creating that mood. The poet is creating that mood, the writer. I also love being able to combine my Eastern heritage. A lot of my works just happen; they’re unintentional.

SR: How have you evolved and embraced change?

JO: I’ve changed because I know the direction; it’s focused on finding a new passion. Three words characterize my work, and I hope they always will: it’s this idea of finding conflict, harmony, and balance. I joke that those words will be on my gravestone because they represent everything I do. There’s conflict and harmony when creating a work, and then trying to find that balance completes the work. I don’t know if anything’s ever really done. That’s why I have some ongoing series; I still want to explore some things. I love the idea of duality. That yin and yang. I love having two canvases together, the idea of having something the same but also different.

I think that’s how it’s evolved and changed for me, in that I’m focused on the idea of all of us being, even though we may look different, we are all similar. It doesn’t matter where we are geographically. My current show, over at the seaport, really is that idea. No matter where we are, we are all searching for that same kind of sun and moon; you know, it doesn’t matter what we look like. So that’s what’s kind of crazy about what’s going on around the world. They’re fighting for all these differences, when we’re, when it comes down to it, at the core, we’re all very similar and the same. And that’s what I try to focus on with my work.

Let me show you my studio in Boston. This is a piece called While I Breathe. I hope you can tell that it’s a nonbinary. She looks like she’s coming out of the water. It has that duality that I mentioned. There’s the portraiture, and she has no neck. I think that our bodies are always catching up to our minds. It’s going back to the idea that our mind is light years ahead of our body, and I love it. I love that thought, and much of my work concerns that.

This is half of a diptych titled Thinking Out Loud. This was my first time combining my figurative and abstract landscapes. It is a big piece; each is 60 inches in height by 48, so it’s 96 inches long. It’s a little bit of a self-portrait. It’s of an Asian woman who is getting away from her upbringing, away from the stereotypes that you would have being from an Asian household. She is covering her ears, looking out, and not listening. She’s blonde because I tried different hair colors to fit in. I’ve always come back to the idea of being a mix and not really fit into any group. You have to try to find your own identity. This is a powerful piece for me, where I’m breaking away from my home and life and moving on to what I’m meant to do and what I’m meant to be. So, she’s naked because there’s nothing more powerful than being nude. She’s modest. Because of my Asian background, I’m more modest, but she has a figure; she has curves. I use creative texture to bring harmony into the natural world. The colors are earth tones, representing my dad, an environmental engineer. There are many words and sayings underneath this piece.

This piece, unlike the others, is a straight-on view. The title is Knots of the Mind. A gallery owner and a graduate of Syracuse told me he couldn’t sell my portraits. He said I represent a feminist view, but he could sell my abstracts. But when he saw this piece, he stated, “You can’t get away from her glare; she almost looks angry.” I look at it and don’t see her angry. I see her actually just looking, just glaring at the viewer. She represents every skin color. It was this idea of “Look at me” because of what was going on with the Asian hate at the time. So, it was my reaction. It goes back to that whole idea of the Renaissance, where she’s in the same position as the artist; she has the same power as the artist, the one creating the piece.

This was in my solo show called We Look at the Same Sun. No matter where we are, we have similar thoughts and hope for the same things. It is the idea of wanting to belong and being part of the same universe. It’s about things we can’t change and having the courage to change things we can. And that’s really kind of the theme of the show. The pieces were created last year when I did a residency in the Berkshires.