On Mythology, the 18th Century, and the World She Paints | An interview with Jessie Makinson

Visual Universe

Jessie Makinson's paintings blend seemingly incompatible elements — folklore, Greek mythology, 18th-century scenes, Georgian games, and speculative fiction — into cohesive works. When asked if this visual language developed intentionally or gradually, Makinson explained that her universe emerges from personal interests and experiences. She noted that ideas often "float around for years before they find their place," referencing Hilary Mantel's idea that creative ideas may wait decades for an artist to be ready.

Faces — Real, Remembered, and Invented

Makinson sources faces from various origins: sometimes friends appear in her paintings, but more often she collects faces from film stills and found imagery, waiting for appropriate moments to incorporate them. Notably, the hands in her paintings are always her own, posed in the moment — representing her physical presence within each work.

Research

The artist engages extensively with literary and art-historical references while painting, listening to audiobooks and reading widely. Rather than illustrating narratives directly, she recognises elements that belong in her world or spark new ideas. Books like Italo Calvino's The Castle of Crossed Destinies have influenced her work for decades. When developing paintings, she researches specific subjects — such as séance imagery — through historical collections and contemporary sources, allowing research to combine with her intuitive vision.

Violence, Humour, and the Coexistence of Both

Makinson's work balances dark comedy with horror through conscious artistic choice and worldview. She finds "casual violence in historical painting" now appears humorous, and she observes that she tends to see existence as "completely absurd. Its beauty and its horror." This tonal tension reflects contemporary reality, where disturbing news cycles run alongside innocuous content.

India — A New Audience

This exhibition marks Makinson's first presentation in India, despite the country's rapidly evolving contemporary art scene. She expressed enthusiasm about reaching fresh audiences. Notably, her earlier work drew significant influence from Indian miniatures, with her characteristic flattened, interlocking compositional space developing from that study.

Titles

Makinson's distinctive titles — like "Stay Here While I Get a Curse" — function as additional interpretive layers rather than descriptions. She collects titles from books, overheard conversations, and various sources, typically selecting them after paintings are completed. The titles must feel organically connected to their works, adding meaning without closing down interpretation.

Evasiveness as a Position

The artist deliberately resists pinning down singular meanings in her work. She believes paintings are complex and shouldn't be reducible to single interpretations, reflecting her own thinking style. While her paintings contain clarity and directness, interference runs through compositions via colour and pattern.

On Being a Woman Painting Women

Critical frameworks around gender and feminist art history represent one valid reading of her work, but Makinson emphasises other equally important considerations: pattern and decoration, complex compositions, and colour relationships deserve analytical attention beyond gendered interpretations.

Currently Showing

The Mythologies of Colour will be exhibited at Soho House Mumbai in April 2026, featuring works by Makinson alongside Parnika Mittal and Mary Pye.