Jill Winnie’s artistic practice merges the aesthetics of refined elegance and luxury with unapologetically decorative and bold motifs. She creates a dialogue that explores notions of value and the commodification of femininity.
Her works often feature objects of desire adorned with intricate embellishments, further glorifying such fetishized commodities into seemingly absolute icons. By layering decorative elements, she reclaims feminine markers frequently dismissed as tacky or superficial, transforming them into vehicles of personal expression and societal commentary. Blending high and low cultural elements, her work challenges traditional notions of taste while questioning these societal views on self-actualization and femininity.
Winnie draws inspiration from craftsmanship practices historically associated with female labor, highly gendered product design, nostalgic pop-cultural references, and her own upbringing in Switzerland surrounded by myths of luxury. She explores themes of longing and alienation linked to high exclusivity and examines how femininity gets reproduced, represented and commodified in contemporary culture.
Her oil paintings begin with classical grisaille underpaintings, which she then tints with varnishes and pigments to create a layered, luminous effect. This technique anchors her practice in the tradition of the old masters while allowing for bold reinterpretation.
Winnie's work becomes a site of introspection, personal rebellion, and reclamation, urging viewers to reconsider how value is assigned—both to objects and identities—within a commodified world.
Jill Winnie (b. 1998, Winterthur, Switzerland) studied Fine Arts at the Zurich University of the Arts, earning her Bachelor’s degree. After completing her studies, she moved to Berlin, where she currently resides and works.
CV
Born 1998 in Winterthur, Switzerland
Resides and works in Berlin, Germany
Solo exhibitions
2024 - Fascination of the Non-existent, Python Gallery, Zurich, CH
2022 - Put Myself First, Won Second Place, Galerie Soon, Zurich, CH
2021 - Family, Anton Bortis, Zurich, CH
2021 - The Tallest Poppy, HausDK, Zurich, CH
Selected group exhibitions
2024 - Playground Legends, Galerie710, Winterthur, CH
2024 - April Collection for Collect Bean, New York, USA
2023 - Like A Deer, Gr_und, Berlin. DE
2022 - Salon der Gegenwart, Helmhaus, Zurich, CH
2021 - Signature (x), Smallville, Neuchatel, CH
2021 - Missed U, Area Manca, Zurich, CH
2021 - Messina, Oxyd, Winterthur, CH
2020 - Area Manca, Area Manca, Zurich, CH
2020 - Voyeurism, Loft5, Winterthur, CH
2020 - Jungkunst, Halle53, Winterthur, CH
2020 - ridiculous sunshine, theoffspace, Zurich, CH
2020 - live!, Go Green Art Gallery, Zurich, CH
2020 - Mykorrhiza, Toni Areal, Zurich, CH