West Liberty University Alumna Jes Reger has been awarded a 2020 Emerging Artist Fellowship from the Tamarack Foundation for the Arts. The fellowships are presented to thriving, early-career artists across West Virginia.
The monetary award includes a stipend and will allow Reger the opportunity to travel and network across the Mountain State.
“I’m so thrilled to be selected and I’m looking forward to learning through this fellowship,” said Reger, who is a native and resident of Wheeling. “It’s exciting that I’ll get to know established artists around West Virginia. I can grow as an artist myself and meet other people who do what I’m trying to do.”
A watercolorist, Reger teaches classes to adults and children at Oglebay Institute’s Stifel Fine Arts Center. She also offers private watercolor and drawing lessons in her home studio, the Painter’s Nest, located in Elm Grove.
Artists selected for the prestigious award must demonstrate not only a superior level of mastery in their craft, but also the aptitude to become successful professionals leading well-managed creative enterprises, according to the Tamarack website.
Five fellows were selected by an independent committee comprised of master-level artists and arts leaders from across the state of West Virginia. This is the second time one of the fellowships were presented to WLU alumni.
Reger earned a Bachelor of Science in interdisciplinary studies with a concentration in visual arts and creative writing from West Liberty University in 2014.
Her work is greatly influenced by the natural world.
“Nature and elements of West Virginia influence my work the most. I like old buildings and architecture too. I guess my work focuses on wildlife and the history of our beautiful state,” she said.
She’s been at the task of building a professional presence in the Wheeling art world for about five or six years now and maintains a social media presence on Facebook (and Instagram (jesreger_watercolor).
Reger won’t have to move to take advantage of the Tamarack award and will continue to be based in Wheeling.
For those interested in purchasing some of her work, Reger has paintings at the Jeweled Bird in Wheeling and greeting cards available at the Wheeling Artisan Center.
