Biography

Gillian Kennedy Wright is a Jamaican born, Canadian, American Lake Park, Florida visual artist. She received her Associates Degree in Graphic Design along with an informal minor in Textile/Fiber Design from Edna Manley School for the Visual Arts, Kingston, Jamaica.

Gillian’s work has been exhibited in solo and group exhibitions in Jamaica, Spain, Canada and the United States. Her work can be found in private and public collections in Jamaica, Spain, Canada, as well as in the United States.

She creates constantly in her home studio, better known as Kennedy Wright Designs LLC and is also an avid University of Florida, Palm Beach County, Master Gardener.

She continually focuses on both strata of her art, the bold, colorful whimsical illustrations; mixed media collages; home décor creations with Jamaica/Caribbean names and sayings. Along with her more serious mixed media fiber art pieces surrounding themes of multicultural faces, plants, patterns and architectural statements.

Whimsical Art Statement

The whimsical illustrations have coined Jamaican/Caribbean characters names that I have met throughout my life. The sayings or “Jamaicanisms” are words of wisdom that my parents especially my mother has always used in my upbringing. These have influenced my versatile whimsical designs. They also include afro centric and multicultural themed art.
As a graphic designer at a T-shirt company, I would sit at the end of my day and draw stick figures. Funny enough I would toss my sketches in the garbage. One year later when I decided to move on to another job. On my last day of work, my coworker presented me with a stack of my discarded sketch book leaves and said, “one day these are going to be AWESOME!” I still have those designs pasted with now yellowing rubber cement in a black sketchbook in my studio. Fast forward… it’s almost 30 years since I drew my first Dafty Duds, Faces and other one of a kind illustrations they have finally come alive again.