About Me
Early in my young life I was also gifted my first camera from my Dad and began my journey as a photographer. I then went to a fabulous young peoples school in Ann Arbor Michigan focused on the arts where I did theater display, clay sculpture and won one of my first awards at the Michigan Science Fair utilizing all my skills so far in a diorama on the Evolution of Man.
This led to being admitted at 11 years old to the University of Michigan Arts School to study Scientific Illustration. I loved it!
In High School I was the Art Editor of our award winning newspaper. Then college took me in the direction of commercial art, journalism and psychology at the University of Arizona and then more photography studying with Lou Bernal. The Lou Bernal Gallery at Pima Community College was established in his name, he was a wonderful teacher. My art teachers throughout this time were also founders of the Drawing Studio in Tucson. Later as I began my career, I went on to study at the Tucson Museum of Art.
​
After graduation I went into marketing and advertising as a Marketing Director, then I was the President of an Art Gallery for several years with 3 locations in Tucson and meeting and working with our artists was a wonderful experience. As I began working in the news industry on the advertising side developing ad campaigns for about 300 businesses and organizations per month I established an incredible network of business owners. Then, as an Interactive Media Manager for a local TV station, then Marketing Director for Tucson's Reid Park Zoo, then as sponsorship Director for the National Organization of Women Business Owners I established streams of revenue and developed their websites.
​
After that part of my career I went on to study with the Chopra Center University, establishing a website that worked with 12 States of clientelle.
This was a a very busy time for me as I created my art and entered shows whenever I could working at my art studio.
Figurative art and commercial art was my focus at the start of my career, now I am excited by form, color and my imagination. My intuition leads my ideas and palette.
Thank you for stopping by,
Jilly Jesson DrD, AFP, CTA
