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A native of northern Michigan, she studied fine art at Central Michigan University and Northwestern Michigan College. Her paintings are directly influenced by the natural environment surrounding her, which has led her to extensive travel throughout the world. Larson divides her time between a rural village in Southern France and her home in Michigan.

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Her paintings are representational of the plants, flowers and birds she chooses as subject matter, yet the interplay between light and color is her main focus. Her subtle manipulation of thin layers of paint and jewel-like color creates an abstracted atmosphere that surrounds the subject, evoking an emotional response from the viewer.

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Her current exhibition at Alan Avery Art Company is Permanence & Impermanence: Iceland - A Land of Temporal Contrasts. Inspired by the vast and ever-changing landscapes of this enchanting island, Jean Larson’s paintings reflect the complex and intriguing worlds she discovered while exploring Iceland.  The gnarled casts of once molten rocks disgorged from deep within the earth, ancient lichens and luxuriant mosses of improbable shades of green all thrive in the extremes of the sub-Arctic climates.  In each, we enter a world of endless possibilities. Larson invites the viewer to quietly observe, as she does, and find their own meaning in these images.

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Larson's work has been exhibited for over thirty years in solo and group exhibitions throughout the U. S. and Europe, and can be found in collections around the world.

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Want to read more about Jean Larson? Check out this exclusive In Studio With where we ask the artist about living in Iceland, odd compliments, and being the subject of art.