Hedwige Jacobs, Aqua, 2010 | marker on board, 9 x 9 inches

Included with every edition of New American Paintings are two Noteworthy artists from the competition–one selected by the edition's guest juror and another selected by the magazine–an honor in addition to being selected as a winner. New and Noteworthy posts seek to catch up with previous Noteworthy artists and discover what they've been up to since they were last included in the magazine.

This week we catch up with Houston-based artist, Hedwige Jacobs (last included in #84 and featured as a Noteworthy artist for #78), who is working towards a show this fall with her gallery in Houston, CTRL.

Tell us about your new work. What's been going on in your studio lately?
I am currently creating a new series of drawings, called the Tree House Series. I use a marker on small format paper, using only one color per drawing. This gives the houses a bold look. Similar to my other works, I am using a variety of one thing and apply it to create different tree houses… The tree houses appear woven and thus relate to my earlier drawings that regularly feature woven structures.

Besides the tree houses, I am also working on a series of works on canvas. These show lots of little figures that become a pattern in an abstract world or desolate landscape. I always have been inspired by the variety of one thing.

You have a show coming up at CTRL Gallery in Houston. What work are you preparing for it?
I want to exhibit a very large version of one of my drawings directly drawn on the wall inspired by the Tree House Series, which is in a way yet another “secondary use” of my drawings. Usually I animate my drawings to make them come alive for a few seconds. However, enlarging them up to extremely large size is another path I am interested in exploring. I also plan to exhibit paintings with [a] little figure I have been working on.

How has your work changed in last year?
I started to work on canvas again, but continue to explore organic growth. Things grow on paper or canvas, like little figures replicating and multiplying becoming big crowds. But my work is also growing in dimension. By enlarging my drawings (on the wall) I take a more sculptural approach. My works always have elements of organic growth in them such as the woven structures and houses.

Any other exciting news?
My animations were part of the FotoFest 2010 biennial in Houston. This was exciting because it was the first time audience saw these new animations and it was also the first time to exhibit these animations on such a large cinema screen. Projecting my animations on such scale is something I would like to do more often. I am also planning to launch a blog that features a new drawing every day; it will be like a diary.