Meet Jeanette Leake | Artist, Painter, Teacher

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jeanette Leake and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jeanette, what role has risk played in your life or career?
The decision to pursue a career as an artist is always a risk. However, I strongly feel that it is a risk worth taking. When I was in college as a fine arts major at a liberal arts university, I consistently had people ask mw why I would spend this much money and take out loans to get a degree in art. “What can you do with that? How will you support yourself? Have you ever heard the term -starving artist?”; These are the questions I frequently heard. For me, however, there was never a question of what I wanted to do with my life. From the time I was very young all I wanted to do was “make stuff”. I daydreamed during school about what I would make or draw when I got home. Luckily my parents completely supported my desire to be an artist. My
mother especially, she bought me supplies and sent me to painting classes and took me to our local museum (The Dixon) often. I think the best thing she did was to allow me to make a mess. So often I hear students say that they are not allowed to work on art at home because its too messy. It is messy and its important to be able to get messy in order to experiment and to think creatively. During college I began painting oil portraits to pay tuition but I never thought of that as being part of my future. After college as I was deciding whether or not to go on to graduate school, my painting professor suggested that I become a professional portrait artist because he said I had a gift. Talk about a risk. I knew nothing about running a business, but I learned. My biggest shock was learning about self -employment tax. My business quickly grew and then boomed. I soon had a three year waiting list. During that time I married and had my first child. The struggle to balance motherhood and keeping up with my commissions was a bit overwhelming so when my second child arrived, I took a risk and decided to take a step back. I
worked down my waiting list and then took a break. I realized as well that I was burned out from portraiture. I wanted to have more freedom to explore the subjects and painting style that brought me more joy. Life moved on and we adopted a daughter from China in 2001. As my children grew older, I began to teach them how to draw and make art and then I began teaching their friends. I found that I genuinely love to teach and to give student of all ages a love for art. When my husband was diagnosed with cancer in 2008 which was also during the recession (people were not spending their money on art or portraits) I decided to begin teaching. I helped to start The Bridge which is a homeschool tutorial program in which I taught all of the art classes. I still worked in my own studio and raised my children. Currently I am the upper school art teacher at Hutchison school, a girls school in Memphis where I have worked and have a studio for the past 15 years.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
My personal art style has grown and changed throughout the years, but my love of vibrant color has not. A risk that I have had to take over the years is to stay true to my own art and not get sucked into trends or of making art that fits into current color schemes and subject matters. The past 10 years has been the decade of white and gray, yet I continue to paint what inspires and
excites me if full vibrant color. I still feel exactly the way I did as a child about making art. I still daydream about what I am going to make every day. I Have the most amazing job. I work with amazing students in a beautiful art studio where I also have a personal studio, and I get to play with all types of art supplies. I also work in my studio at home. My children are now grown, and I have 4 grandchildren. My wonderful husband passed away after a long battle with cancer just a few weeks before our 32 anniversary. Life did not always move along as planned, I never thought I would be a teacher, and I never thought I would be a widow( I hate that word) but one thing that has not been a surprise is that I am still making art everyday and I truly cant imagine if I had listened to all the people who thought that being an artist was too big of a risk. The real risk would have been to jeopardize a life of joy and fullfillment in place of a safer or more financially stable path.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I would begin the day by eating breakfast a Stacks pancakes in east Memphis. I know its a chain, but they have amazing pancakes. Then we would go a few doors down to the Mighty Olive to stock up on olive oils and balsamic vinegars. They have transformed my cooking. Our next stop would be to the Dixon museum to view the art and to draw in the gardens and maybe get a cappuccino in the café. Next we would take a walk around the lake at Shelby farms and then bike the green line down to Highpoint Pizza for lunch. In the afternoon we would do a little shopping at a few of my favorite places like Millstone Market in Germantown, Palladio for antiques and browse through Novel which is a cute independent book store. I also think we have a fantastic zoo. My favorite restaurants tend to be the little hole in the wall places. I love Elwook shack, One and Only BBq,

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My mother was always my cheerleader and supporter as I grew up. My husband and children have always loved my art and push me to do more than I think I can do. I also have a group of women that meet with on a regular bases. We make art together, travel to see art and to take classes together and we consistantly encourage, support and challenge each other in our work; Melanie Anderson, Glenda Brown, and Dana Harris. All are fabulous artists. As a Christian I also believe that my art is something that God has given me and had directed me throughout my career.