Jenny Bye

Jonace’s Place. 2023. Mixed media.

(Currently displayed in the Art Masters 2023 exhibit at the Minnehaha Country Club.)

“In a way, I had Jonace in mind as I painted this diptych,” said Jenny. “I have heard the story a million times. West of Platt SDlived a man that people called Joni, for short.  He was a friend of the family, and if you came to visit, he would offer you a cup of hot water. Joni had an old, remodeled bus for hunters to sleep in.  The tales grow deeper as the decades pass.”

A Sioux Falls-based artist, Jenny Bye has been painting in the encaustic technique for twelve years. She fuses beeswax, damar resin, dry pigments and collage elements, and variously applies and scrapes them to create her art. Jenny grew up in Lincoln NE and Sioux Falls and has lived in and worked in WY, MT, and IA. She studied art at Eastern Montana State University in Billings and has a Bachelor of Science from SDSU. Before relocating to Sioux Falls seven years ago, Jenny was the education coordinator at the Sioux City Art Center. She has had solo exhibitions at the Sioux City Art Center, Yankton Area Arts Association, the Sioux Falls Arts Council, Augustana University, JLG Architecture Firm, Touchmark Retirement Community, Eastbank Art Gallery. Her work was published in the Briar Cliff Review in 2016, 2017, 2019, and 2023.