Jill Targer teaches silk painting at Allan Hancock College in Santa Maria. She paints with watercolors on paper and dyes on silk.

Originally from Cleveland, Ohio, Jill Targer studied art at the Cleveland Institute of Art and Physical Therapy at the University of Pennsylvania. A late bloomer, she didn’t begin her career as an artist until inspired and encouraged by her family and the beautiful Santa Maria Valley, where she has lived for over25 years. Surrounded by lush vineyards and mountains, with the magnificent Pacific nearby, Jill’s charming interpretations of her chosen subjects glow in her colorful watercolors and silk paintings.

In her silk paintings, Jill draws freehand, using gutta resist to form barriers for her special dyes. Silk is very responsive to water and color, producing intense effects and staining which is controlled in part by the gutta, seen as white outlines. In Jill’s hands, this technic results in the fresh and lighthearted designs that have become her trademark.

Jill Targer’s paintings have been featured on posters for the Santa Maria Grapes & Grains festival in 2002 and 2003, and on the front cover of the Allan Hancock College Spectrum Schedule for Fall 2004. She has won numerous awards for her paintings of wine country and the Central Coast. Her works are on display at several galleries in Southern California.

I enjoy the simplicity of “just add water” as the basic rule of watercolor (and silk) painting – like I did as a child. I admire the lucent quality, and welcome watercolor’s “happy accidents,” because they encourage spontaneity and flexibility.

I believe that art is interactive and requires three elements to be successful.

They are: my idea, the medium, and your imagination.
In other words: “In expressing my ideas, I like to let the paints do the work, then stop a bit short and invite your imagination to take over.”

Maybe my left-handedness puts a twist on my subjects, especially the quirky titles. Many of them have more than one meaning. I choose to paint the things I love and admire: big trucks and carnivals, roller coasters, flowers, grapes and wine, the sea, friendship and life in general. I revive my fondest memories and share the fun of discovery with you.

My personal goal is to emphasize the common threads in our world, while celebrating the uniqueness of each of us. I try to illustrate this with humor, and strive to keep my paintings simple and direct. I don’t expect to change the world through my passion, but I do hope to change it one smile at a time.

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