State of the Union w/ Jane O’Hara

Has a painting or piece of artwork ever stopped you, immediately demanding your full attention? Such is so often the case with Jane O’Hara’s paintings. This week, Jane joins us for a conversation about her artwork, which highlights “the failure of the human-animal bond and the tendency of humans to impose their own agenda despite the risks.” We specifically discuss her extraordinary new series State of the Union, currently on exhibit at the New Bedford Art Museum in Massachusetts. The series, at once appearing extremely familiar and yet vaguely surreal, is a visual and auditory examination of the animal experience across the US. We dig into Jane’s artistic process and the pivotal moment she realized she wanted to embrace a vegan lifestyle, and she also shares the story of her late cat Nellie, why she decided to use Nellie as an anchor in the State of the Union series, and the difference in how we tend to treat companion animals and farmed animals.

Jane O’Hara is a contemporary American artist, curator and founder of Jane O’Hara Projects. She received a BFA in painting from Boston University. Jane’s work has been presented and exhibited across the US. She is an honoree of the Courage of Conscience Award from the Peace Abbey, honoring individuals and organizations that have distinguished themselves through humanitarian causes, peace and social justice activism.

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