BIOGRAPHY

Born in Knutsford, Cheshire, 1974, I now live in Hale with my seven cats.
I consider myself to be a self-taught painter. Although I spent three years at college, whilst there, I didn’t really draw or paint. I did not get on well with some of my tutors. I felt that most of the time I could never please them. I was not a lazy student; I was simply working in a different way to how they expected. I found the painting and drawing classes and the methods of teaching very un-creative, un-imaginative, even tedious. I felt dictated to, restricted and as if my creativity was being drowned. Any desires I had to paint were crushed. Consequently, I concentrated on sculpture, metal work, ceramics and anything that involved working in 3D. I also enjoyed photography.
I have been painting constantly since leaving college in 1994 and professionally for 7 years; I love it!
The natural world, music and my imagination inspire me in all my work. I see my female form work as a gradual process of thought, planning and creation.

JENNY BENT FEMALE FORM WORK
I love painting the human body. I find the challenge very rewarding! Although the colours I use are at times not realistic, I like to attain the right forms and shapes. My earlier paintings of the female form are cheeky, colourful, different and intriguing. They are quite bold in form and colour.
I use models to help me create my female form pieces. They sit for me at my studio and I also photograph them. I am also the subject in some of my female form creations although I can be quite shy, so my face is often obscured or it is usually a side or rear view!
In my new series of paintings, which I have been planning for many months, the female form will be a lot more classical with light and colour. I also wish to include male characters in my new work. I greatly admire and am inspired by Pre- Raphaelite paintings and their creators, including Dante Gabriel Rosseti, John William Waterhouse and John Everett Millais.
In this new series, I intend to combine Middle Eastern, Gothic and Egyptian atmospheres and imagery with a theatrical feel; also incorporating belly dancing and the stunning costumes associated with this form of dance. I want this series of paintings to evoke feelings of passion, curiosity, beauty, excitement and eroticism for the viewer and myself.
I use mixed media in most of my nude paintings; oils, acrylics, charcoal, gouache and pastels.

Photography is also a passion of mine. With the female form it is forming a part to my work and creativity more and more. Although the main elements of the original image may be preserved, I enjoy manipulating the image, using various digital and painting techniques; experimenting using different layers of images.

I love dancing and thrive on all types of music, from Rock to Classical, from Latin American to Egyptian, from Thrash Metal to Blues (I have also been a professional Belly Dancer for about 6 years which has helped fund my career as an artist). I frequently dance in my studio whilst I am painting, this really helps me stay motivated and inspired, especially late at night!

CAREER
I welcome the challenge of working to a set brief and I also enjoy being free to express my ideas, thoughts and active imagination without any set guidelines.
My work has been featured in various magazines, including City Life, Cheshire Life, The Living Edge and the Erotic Review! My paintings have also appeared on National Television.
A private collection of my paintings is held at The Inns Of Court in London! My works are privately owned by all sorts of people, from doctors to accountants, to barristers, to college lectures, to grandparents all over the UK. I also have collectors of my work in America!
In the last seven years, I have exhibited and sold my work all over the NorthWest in private and public galleries, restaurants and wine bars:
Stockport Art Gallery, Stockport, Cheshire
The Watergate Street Gallery, Chester, Cheshire
Toucan Art Gallery, Hale, Cheshire
The Paintstop, Hale, Cheshire
The Bury Met Art Centre, Lancashire
The Longden Gallery, Macclesfield, Cheshire
The Blacksheep Gallery, Hawarden, Cheshire
Loop Gallery, Chorlton, Manchester
Hurricane Gallery & Interiors, Manchester
PPS Gallery, Hale, Cheshire
The Tarporley Gallery, Tarporley, Cheshire
The Picture House Studio, Sandbach, Cheshire
Snockers On The Green Restaurant & Bar, Altrincham, Cheshire
Francs Live Jazz Lounge, Altrincham, Cheshire
Eze Restaurant, Altrincham, Cheshire
The Gallery at Blakemere, Cheshire
The Black Swan Gallery, Congleton, Cheshire
Wendy J Levy Contemporary Gallery, Didsbury, Manchester