Vespertine founder Jillianne Jöns was raised on the Navajo reservation in northern Arizona, a farm in Missouri, and in the city of Cleveland, OH. Traveling between many socioeconomic climates and physical landscapes taught her an appreciation for the beauty of various cultures and how art can be used to express it. During this time she developed natural skills from her art teacher parents through painting, drawing, and clay. In high school she attended an Arts & Leadership Academy in Flagstaff, AZ. There she interned at the Museum of Northern Arizona’s archaeology department archiving ancient pottery created by local Native American tribes. Later while earning a BFA in Graphic Design, she minored in ceramics which expanded her knowledge of the clay medium.
After working a few years as an LMT in Santa Barbara, CA and a Graphic Designer for the Children’s Museum Tucson, she secured a position as Lead Sculptor at Gail T. Roberts Studio in Tucson, AZ. This proved to be her greatest education yet. There she conceptualized and constructed large-scale ceramic tile murals for public and private installations. Getting to work with such clients as Reid Park Zoo, Tucson Botanical Gardens, Girl Scouts of America, Tucson Medical Center, and Saguaro National Park taught her the steps necessary to produce large-scale projects from concept to completion.
In 2016 Jillianne attained a decade-long dream when she, her husband, and two pups moved to Portland, Oregon. There she founded Vespertine, an ever-evolving collection of hand-sculpted porcelain works inspired by the elegance of nature, ritual, and witchy energy.
For Jillianne, creating ceramic pieces is an intimate process. Every piece is affectionately meditated on when considering how it will be used and displayed. “It’s important that all my materials are locally and ethically sourced. I wish to live in an empathetic and loving world so it’s important my art reflects that”. Jillianne’s ultimate hope is that through her work, clients experience the same appreciation she has for the beauty and magic in our natural world.