Jen Hernandez

Jen Hernandez is an artist and educator based in Corvallis, Oregon. Her artwork is inspired by the natural environment, people, and stories of the Pacific Northwest, with special attention to diversity in representation. She works with painting, illustration and body movement imaging to share and embody stories.

Jen has taught for more than 18 years. She has been an art teacher for a pre-K through 8th grade school and an educator with museums, arts organizations and community centers. Additionally, she has worked with local nonprofit social service organizations with youth, and organizations serving adults with disabilities.

Throughout this professional practice, she has also taught in the subjects of art-making skills (painting, sculpture, collage, digital design, illustration, fiber arts, crafting), art history, science (for children 12 years and younger), and life skills, utilizing her own developed curriculum and learning plans for the majority of her work.

Educational environments have included classrooms, special events, recurring classes in community centers, one-time workshops, public and private sessions, camps for kids, and adult continuing education.

Learn more about Jen and her work as an artist and educator at https://jenhernandezart.com

Residency Objectives:
As a teaching artist, Jen works with schools to develop residencies that fit their and their students’ needs. Students will become comfortable sharing their work and their considerations in creating their work, and participate in constructive dialog about the work of others with non-judgemental language, centered on curiosity and possibility, and by noting specific observations. Students will learn how art can be a part of their lives and understand the joy of working with their hands to complete an art project.

 

Sample Residencies

Visual Arts: Comic Book Crafting: students create their own characters and story for a comic book; learn about illustration, observation, story crafting

Visual Arts: Monster Makers: students create creatures from polymer clay and discuss and imagine habitats and physical adaptations that allow those creatures to survive in those habitats

Crafting: Sketchbook-making plus observational illustration (field sketchbook); students make their own sketchbooks and practice illustrating and describing natural elements

 

Staff and Community Offerings:

In-service trainings:
Anti-oppression language in the classroom – words and language to use when addressing student behavior
Sketchbook crafting for students – how to lead your class in creating their own sketchbooks and embrace choice and responsibility in creative activities
Forum Theatre (via Theatre of the Oppressed) for classroom conflicts – how to intervene on conflicts within the classroom (with and among students) using TO Forum Theatre techniques.
Theatre Games for classrooms – games to engage student embodiment and image theatre to connect with subjects

Facilities and Supplies:
Classroom with space for students to move around for image theatre, and to sit and work comfortably. Place to keep books students can look through. For polymer clay activities: well-ventilated area with access to power for toaster oven (to bake clay).

Story crafting/ comics: Sketchbooks (provided by artist), pencils, inking pens (for students to keep), coloring tools

Polymer clay: Clay, clay tools (loaned by artist), foil, cardstock

Field Sketchbook: Book board, sketch paper, embroidery thread, embroidery needles (loaned by artist)

 

Material Costs:

Story crafting/ comics: $6 per child; Polymer clay: $7 per child; Field Sketchbook: $6 per child

Connection to other Subjects: Science, Social Science, Language Arts, Theater, Life Skills