‘My work is kind of like gardening,” explains Hannah Jennings. “There’s weeding, pruning, planting”there are edibles, flowering plants.” Jennings is enjoying an artistic career based on creativity and problem-solving”and currently runs two separate businesses. Hannah Jennings Design offers professional services, including website creation and maintenance, logo design, exhibit illustration and signage, and more. “Be of Good Cheer” offers house portraits and artwork geared more to individuals. “No one wants to work for a boss, right?” she asks, explaining her entrepreneurial impulse. “I love where my career has taken me and the freedom of my lifestyle.”
Jennings received her bachelor’s degree in art from Ohio Wesleyan in her home state. Her father was a musician and her family was very artistic. “I had an aunt who died young who was an artist I was very inspired by,” she says. “Like everyone from a smaller town, I wanted to come to the big city, Chicago, and I did. She received her Master of Fine Art degree from The School Of The Art Institute of Chicago.
Ignoring the old stage maxim of “never work with kids or animals” Jennings did both. Her award-winning design work can be seen in a wide range of places”from the Brookfield Zoo and the Frank Lloyd Wright Home & Studio in the Chicago area to the Monterey Bay Aquarium in California, the Brevard Zoo in Florida, Sunbums newspaper in Honolulu and the Ontario Science Center in Canada.
“I was manager of design for more than 20 years at Brookfield Zoo,” she notes. Some of the most well-known artwork associated with Brookfield Zoo was created by her, including the beloved Brookfield Zoo Holiday Magic featuring the polar bears in a woodblock print motif, the ethereal creatures and eerie atmosphere of The Swamp, and the stark nomadic look of The Fragile Desert.
Her extensive experience with professional exhibits and their design led to a book on the subject, co-authored with another professional. “Some things are better learned through books or the Internet but collections are best for museums”just seeing lots and lots of stuff.” She also points out that museums “compete for precious leisure time.”
Jennings worked from the concept stage to final signage and illustrations. “For the Swamp project at Brookfield Zoo, I was brought in at the very idea stage,” she recalls. “The purpose was to show people how they affect their environment, which led to wetlands and the selection of the Cypress swamp in America as the vehicle to experience the education”pretty interesting process.” Jennings often has traveled in the past, as with the Swamp, to learn firsthand about her subject. “The concept was to immerse visitors in the full experience by creating a reality.” Among her illustrations, signage and design is “The Adventures of Duncan the Dragonfly” scrolling storybook where children learn about biodiversity at Dragonfly Marsh, the Brookfield Zoo wetland exhibition.
Jennings also has a separate business called “Be Of Good Cheer.” The name came from the way she signs off on her letters to friends. BOGC represents the more personal side of her career”instead of working with people on business-related websites or projects, she lends her unique creative vision and artistic talent to bring their world to life”either for themselves or as gifts for loved ones. From handmade books commemorating personal journeys to custom holiday cards to house portraits, Jennings prides herself on her ability to capture and interpret a person’s essence.
“I especially love houses and how people create their own nest,” she says enthusiastically. “I really seem to have a special affinity for being attuned to people and their homes.” Jennings does custom illustrations of people’s personal environments”from historical mansions to beloved family homes. She also creates custom greeting cards of the home illustrations and of her own interpretation of Christmas in Oak Park and Chicago. Capturing Chicago landmarks such as the lions of the Art Institute and the Picasso sculpture, she puts them in dreamy Midwest winterlands with holiday wreaths and bows.
She also enjoyed the distinction this past May of being a “featured artist” for the 2006 Wright Plus tour of homes. “I have always been drawn to Frank Lloyd Wright,” she says. “As a child, my family went to see one of his houses when we we didn’t know anything about him.” Jennings currently maintains a successful working relationship with the Frank Lloyd Wright Preservation Trust, illustrating well-known Frank Lloyd Wright houses. An avid gardener, her home was featured on the recent Oak Park Garden Tour as well.
“It’s really interesting how my relationships feed into other areas. For example, I designed a logo and website for a Chicago jeweler”Hedda Lubin”and now we are sharing a booth together at the upcoming Oak Park art show,” she says. The 32nd Oak Park Arts and Craft Show is August 18 and 19 in Scoville Park. Jennings can be reached through the websites of her own creation at www.hannahjenningsdesign.com and at www.bogoodcheer.com.