Local Artist Jandi Small Connects with Collectors After Painting Sale

There’s something especially meaningful about original art finding the perfect home, and for local artist Jandi Small, that moment became even more memorable when she had the opportunity to meet the couple who purchased her painting. This is the second farm-couple with an extremely large potato painting Jandi has created.

As she explains, “The first one was accepted to the Minnesota State Fair Fine Art exhibition, summer 2024.  I had painted it just for my own amusement as I have always been fascinated by the 2000 lb pumpkins and giant rutabagas that are features of harvest time in the Midwest.  The painting sold at the VIP party before the fair opened and won two large cash prizes at the fair.  I received hundreds of emails from fair visitors who wanted to buy the painting, expressing their love for giant tubers – it was wild!  I also was contacted by two very chic art galleries wanting to represent my work.  The whimsical potato painting opened up a whole new direction for my art – portraits of real-looking farm people in their farms and gardens, proudly holding giant fruits and vegetables.  I’ve painted and sold giant onions, eggplants, tomatoes, watermelons, strawberries, pears, apples…even a two-story tall head of Romaine titled “Lettuce Rejoice in This Bounty”. This style is fun for me to paint as many of the pieces of produce that “model” for me I have grown in my own garden.  I “audition” the vegetables after I pick them to find the best example to paint, then I cook them for dinner! 

 I also enjoy painting people, especially the very strong Scandinavian immigrant farmers of the Midwest where I lived the last eight years before moving to Sequim.

After Jandi’s painting sold, she was able to personally connect with the collectors, creating a special artist-to-buyer experience that highlights the heart of the Sequim art community. Meeting the couple gave Jandi the chance to hear what drew them to her work and why the painting spoke to them, making the sale even more rewarding.

Moments like these are part of what makes visiting a local art gallery in Sequim, WA so special. Art is more than something beautiful for the wall—it becomes a story, a connection, and a lasting memory between the artist and the collector.

Jandi Small’s successful painting sale is a wonderful reminder of how Olympic Peninsula artists, collectors, and the Sequim gallery scene come together to support creativity and meaningful connections through art.