2025 Review, Fire Horse Ahead [NEWSLETTER]

Hello,

Looking back on 2025, I'm grateful for new art, shows, a Morocco residency that broadened my artist perspective, and moments of recognition. Thank you for your continued support, whether you've been here this year or just joined. As we enter the Year of the Fire Horse, I'm energized and ready for new ideas and creativity … with an early heads up about February art events.

2025 in Review

🎨 New Work

2025 was a year of momentum returning. After my accident in 2024 and two major surgeries, I spent much of this year catching up on studio time. I finished a number of paintings, including two Barbizon-inspired pieces created for a Tokyo exhibition (November 2025), along with a number of commissioned works. 

I also completed a four-part series for the Dutch Equine Art Fair (November 2025), which is now back in my studio as part of a broader recalibration. In 2025, I felt a noticeable shift—an urge to evolve, experiment, and refine the direction of my work. That change was influenced by two things: exploring watercolor studies this year, and reflecting on eight years of steady painting. Together, they brought me back to what matters most to me in the studio: paintings of presence, bolder decisions, and emotion carried by color and light.

That spirit of experimentation showed up not only in larger pieces, but also through small-format works for the Paard Verzameld Equine Art Collective one-week challenges—quick studies where I test composition, technique, and style, and often carry discoveries back into the larger paintings.

I’m excited to see what 2026 brings—new pieces, and the completion of a few works still in motion from 2025. Right now, I’m working on my 2026 studio focus around Horses ~ Horizons ~ Light—a guiding thread as new work takes form.

View the full gallery here:  https://jflowerart.com/portfolio

🖼️ Art Events

 2025 art calendar was busy with 12 art events—both juried and by invitation—spanning Paris, Saumur, Amsterdam, and Tokyo, plus two personal shows at Galerie 39 Barbizon. Love these events as a great way not only to share work, but also to reconnect with fellow artists, collectors, and art enthusiasts.

One of the year’s most defining moments was an art residency in Morocco (June 2025). Immersed in the region’s scenery, light, and color, I collaborated with other artists and shifted from oils into watercolor studies—working faster, simplifying, and using light and color to capture the moment quickly was a challenge. It was a genuine creative reset, and it made me think of Turner, Constable, and Sargent using watercolor to stay close to the moment. I love watercolors and want to work a little more in this medium in 2026.

🏅 Awards & Recognition

In 2025, I was honored to receive several awards, including:

• Prix du Public Jeune — Salon d’Automne (Coubron) (November 2025)

• PRIX Arts Majestic — Galerie Montsûrs, AEAF Salon Internationale des Arts (Paris, May 2025)

I also received several awards via international online art competitions throughout the year. I use these competitions to have work visible, challenged, and in conversation beyond my local exhibitions.

I was pleased to end the year with acceptance as a member of the Oil Painters of America. It is an association that promotes excellence in representational art and supports oil painters through juried exhibitions, education, and a professional community.

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 What’s Next

2026 has already begun at full speed, with February in particular feeling like the artist’s version of corporate busy season (October tends to be the other). From Barbizon to the Grand Palais in Paris, here are a few dates for your diary

• Paris | Galerie Thuillier — Prix du Jury — 30 January to 12 February (vernissage Tuesday 3 February, 6pm)

• Barbizon | Galerie 39 — Hiver en Couleur — 2 to 15 February

• Paris | Art Capital 2026 — Grand Palais — 13 to 15 February (Vernissage Thursday 12 February by invitation)

✨ If you’re nearby—or planning a Paris weekend—I’d love to see you in person.

I’ll send another email in the next day with further information about these art events. 

Stay tuned and hope to see you soon!

Have a great weekend!

Best,

Jeannine