Introducing Jesse Zhang

Born, raised and still happily living in Brooklyn, Jesse Zhang shares a studio with her cat, Margot, and creates mystical, intriguing surrealism for a wealth of commercial clients from Adobe to The New Yorker. Absorbed in her work we catch a few moments of her time to get some insights into her background and visual approach.

“An idea is just the seed, and how the idea grows and takes shape often has its own energy that is beyond me. Especially when I work in inks and watercolors, there is only so much that can be controlled — which is one of the reasons why I love the medium. It allows room for experimentation and happy accidents, and for something to manifest organically. I currently work in my home studio — which is also my living room, my bedroom, and my cat’s entire universe. It’s small which challenges me to be extra intentional with what I choose to surround my creative and living space with.

My style has been developing for a long time, is it dramatic to say my whole life? I focused solely on painting, and creating sculptures when I was in high school, and then in college. I didn’t work in a digital medium until I became an illustrator, and I don’t think I would have found my style if I had not spent years mixing paint, experimenting with clay, and getting my hands messy. Those were foundational years that taught what mediums I created best with and it influenced the way I approach my digital work, which still has a painterly and textured feel.

My high school art teachers influenced me tremendously. I wasn’t all that interested in going to school, and the art program was the only thing I looked forward to in my day. I had to keep my grades at a decent level to remain in the program. It gave my high school years a sense of purpose. They saw my potential and provided a lot of guidance and emotional support, as well as helping me develop a portfolio to apply to art schools. My parents did not go to college and supporting me through art school was extremely open-minded for them and their upbringing. I have the privilege to pursue this career because of timing, luck, and the opportunities that came my way.

Nowadays I'm the only professional artist in my family — though I come from a very crafty family. I remember my mother always making things, such as altering my clothing and making my halloween costume one year. She worked as a pattern maker and could look at an item of clothing and understand how it was made. My cultural background has also influenced me a lot — I was drawn to inks because of calligraphy and Chinese ink paintings. I always loved how free and loose the brush strokes felt, while still remaining harmonious.

I’ve been fortunate to work on a great many projects with a broad variety of clients. A particular favourite project was a series of 10 spots I created for The Believer, Issue # 128. It was one of the first projects I had published in print, and where I felt like I found my illustration style. Moving forward I would love to work on more murals! I did my first large mural in 2023 for a playground. It was creatively and personally fulfilling that I was helping to make an environment beautiful and enjoyable for the community to be in.

See more of Jesse's beautiful work here.

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