Is it even erotic art?: an Interview with Jillian Mae
I’ve recently connected with fellow Florida-based artist, Jillian Mae. Her work is very dreamlike, but not in the usual sense of the word– it is surreal and depicts images that some would maybe see in a fever dream or during a hallucination.
In a section of the interview, Jillian proposes that her work isn’t necessarily erotic. It is the viewer whose own biases and subjectivity are what make it erotic. So this sparks the question… Is art erotic just because there is nudity?
Who are you? Introduce yourself!
Hi, My name is Jillian. I am an artist, visual poet, recreational athlete, hippy, wife, and Mom to 4 kids from 10 months - 10 years old. I live in Florida, USA, I graduated from Ringling College of Art in 2008.
Describe your journey within the context of being an artist:
I guess I’ve always been an artist, I’ve always been encouraged to keep creating. At this point in my life, it’s my only acquired skill so I just keep at it.
How did you pick the name “Your Favorite Weird Dream”?
Your Favorite Weird Dream is just the name I picked for my backup Instagram account that I recently made. I was just trying to summarize the vibe of my art as a collective into a one-liner. Sometimes in dreams, we catch ourselves doing something bizarre… or maybe we get turned on by something that we wouldn’t normally do in our awake life. When we awake we judge ourselves a little but we smile cause we know we secretly liked it. I think my paintings are like that.
How do you structure your creative time?
My creative time is always, I’m always in my head thinking about art, or thinking how I can flip the boring every day into something more spectacular, funny, or romantic. But that’s all in my head… the time I actually get to spend creating outside my head is limited.
Did I tell you I live on a 13-acre farm with chickens, goats, cows, dogs, cats, and a duck? I feed over 20 mouths every morning before I feed myself. I have a 10-month-old daughter who is already walking and getting into everything, and a 4-year-old son who I am homeschooling, I’m teaching him to read & write. We hit up every zoo, aquarium, and playground in the area before lunch. My 10-year-old daughter is on the swim team so we are at the pool almost every day after school. And my seven-year-old son wants to be a fighter, so we are at either Muay Thai or Jiu-jitsu every night.
My art takes a back seat to all this. Luckily I’m not a big sleeper. I only require 4.5-5hrs to function at my best. I often wake up at odd hours (nursing the baby) and can’t fall back asleep, this is the only quiet time I have to work on my digital paintings... That’s all the time I have though. I go through periods when I get more obsessive with my art…but when that happens there is a sink of dirty dishes, frozen pizza & a permission slip somewhere that I forgot to sign.
How would you describe your local art scene to anyone unfamiliar with it?
The art scene around me is mostly sunsets and pelican paintings… but luckily the art community an hour north in St. Pete, Florida found me and has taken me in. St. Pete has a really fun local art scene full of weird, spectacular artists. There are always fun pop-up art events to be a part of and lots of cool down to Earth galleries. The art community in St. Pete is very supportive of my work, it’s become a second home to me.
Your work is very dreamlike. Do dreams play an important role in your art?
I’ve always been a vivid dreamer, I have journals filled with my dreams written down since I was a kid. I love how backward your brain works in a dream and how real it feels even after you wake up.. until you tell it out loud to someone and realize how ridiculous it sounds. I like this about dreams and I try to tap into that side of my brain even when I’m not sleeping, as sort of an escape I guess, escape from changing diapers, driving to practice, and cooking dinner. The art I’m making right now is just for me, therapy of sorts. It is very personal to me, some on a deeper level, some more for entertainment value. My paintings expose my emotions, fantasies, dirty jokes, and vulnerabilities.
Where do you see yourself taking your work in the future?
Although I make mostly digital art right now, I much prefer real paint on canvas, and I look forward to finding time in my studio again when the baby gets older.
As someone who makes erotic artwork, how do you handle comments and critiques of your work?
I don’t really consider my work erotic. Yeah, some of my paintings have genitalia and are more sexual...but that’s just one side of me that comes through in some of my work. I try to keep it subjective, often times the work isn’t erotic at all, the viewer just takes it there in their own interpretations.
What people say about it is on them, it doesn’t have any effect on me… unless you report me on social media and I end up in Facebook jail… that’s always a bummer. But that’s why I have a backup account now.
Do you collaborate with other artists?
I do love collaborations—- but it’s been a long while. My art lately is just for me.
Who are your influences?
I look at a ton of art, too much art really. Some of my favorites (not necessarily erotic) new & old include Oda Jaune, Larissa De Jesús NegrónA, Rae Klein, Vahid Sharifian, Roland Toper, Ithell Colquhoun, and Hieronymus Bosch. But still, I like to think most of my inspiration comes from nature and “God.”
How do you promote your work?
I don’t really have time to promote my work… I post it to Instagram but less than 5% of my followers see my posts. I post to Facebook art groups too, but that’s where I get reported a lot, then I can’t post for a month. I honestly would love to know where people stumble across my work.
What’s next for you?
Dinner & bedtime stories.. lol I don’t have a five-year plan, but I do hope to ditch my iPad and get back on the canvas as soon as all my kids are in school.
Where can people find you?
Instagram is still the best place to see my latest work and connect with me. But mark me as your favorite cause I’m always in the shadow ban!
