{"id":551522,"date":"2026-07-21T01:52:24","date_gmt":"2026-07-21T01:52:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/551522\/"},"modified":"2026-07-21T01:52:24","modified_gmt":"2026-07-21T01:52:24","slug":"sacred-artist-june-jameson-aims-to-bring-heaven-down-to-earth-visually-national-catholic-register","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/551522\/","title":{"rendered":"Sacred Artist June Jameson Aims to \u2018Bring Heaven Down to Earth Visually\u2019| National Catholic Register"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sacred artist June Jameson was trained in both Old Masters classical realism and French impressionism, and she is recognized for developing a distinct style of portraiture that blends both traditions.<\/p>\n

That artistry can be seen on display in numerous homes that have prints of her paintings. Her Marian-themed artwork is particularly popular. <\/p>\n

\u201cI painted Our Lady of Grace, which is very feminine, very motherly, when I had a 6-week-old baby. Our Lady is surrounded by all those flowers,\u201d Jameson told the Register. She put it on Etsy, and customers clamored, with Jameson selling more than 10,000 prints.<\/p>\n

Patrons have commissioned Jameson to paint portraits in oil, reflecting this multitalented artist\u2019s characteristic delicacy and depth of feeling. Her painting of St. Maximilian Kolbe<\/a> won one of the top prizes in the Catholic Art Institute\u2019s international \u201cSacred Art Prize 2025\u201d competition. Her work also appears in books, churches and Catholic institutions and is licensed by the Diocesan Library of Art for liturgical use. She is represented in The Sacred Art Gallery<\/a>.<\/p>\n

She is also a mother of 10 children, the youngest of whom is 7 months old.<\/p>\n

Creativity \u2014 and Being Called <\/p>\n

Jameson, 40, herself was very young when her talent appeared. <\/p>\n

\u201cAll I wanted to do was draw,\u201d the Ocala, Florida-based artist told the Register. Raised since she was 3 years old by a single father, she remembers always asking him for paper for her drawings that she would tape to walls so that her dad could \u201ctour\u201d her art show.<\/p>\n

\u201cI always loved being creative,\u201d she recalled. In high-school art class, she \u201chad an intuitive sense of shape and form,\u201d and the teacher invariably held her work up as an example for others. She also won competitions.<\/p>\n

Her religious art grew as a big part of her spiritual journey. <\/p>\n

At the University of Florida, she went to parties \u2014 until something happened that she attributes to her Catholic grandmother\u2019s constant prayers. At one party, she recalled, she looked around and realized, \u201cWhat\u2019s the point of all this? This is nothing but emptiness.\u201d She continued, \u201cI left, went in my purse and I pulled out a prayer card of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which my grandmother insisted I carry around. I didn\u2019t hear a voice, but I heard in my heart, \u2018I\u2019m Jesus; I\u2019m real. And you need to follow me.\u2019 it was like God calling my name.\u201d<\/p>\n

She went to a Catholic church \u2014 \u201cbecause that\u2019s what my grandmother was\u201d \u2014 and attended Mass, \u201cand it was like all the puzzle pieces fit together,\u201d she said. She joined RCIA and was baptized, confirmed and received the Eucharist all at age 19 at Easter in Gainesville, Florida. She met her husband Bill in that process; they married at 21 and had their first child that year \u2014 all while June was a senior in college.<\/p>\n

Studying Her Craft <\/p>\n

She planned to be a teacher when the baby grew older. But the family kept growing and her husband\u2019s job took them to Boston. \u201cBeing this young family with all these kids, like so many other people, we were struggling just to make ends meet,\u201d Jameson said, recounting how she looked for a way to help from home and also have a creative outlet. In 2011, on Etsy, she highlighted paintings of her children as examples of portraits she offered to paint. People began commissioning her.<\/p>\n

Looking to constantly improve, Jameson said she learned, \u201cIf you want to do great portraits, look at the Old Masters\u2019 paintings and copy them. That point is when I realized I had been completely deprived of great art my entire life. I never got to go to a museum. I was not shown that in art class.\u201d<\/p>\n

In high school, popular magazines were filled with distortions of the human figure, she explained, \u201cbut in RCIA I had heard we were made in the image of God, and then all of a sudden, it made sense. It was just so eye-opening.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSeeing art like the Sistine Madonna, Michelangelo, the human figure glorified reached into the depths of my very soul, and it lit a fire within me,\u201d she explained, knowing, \u201cThis is what I want to do. I want to paint this. I\u2019m going to be the best portrait artist I can possibly be.\u201d<\/p>\n

She learned from Old Masters such as Diego Vel\u00e1zquez (ca. 1599-1660), who has been a huge influence \u2014 she recently completed a large painting of her interpretation of his Christ Crucified<\/a>; in her interpretation, she placed the Blessed Mother at Christ\u2019s feet \u2014 plus Caravaggio, Vermeer, Rembrandt, da Vinci and Raphael.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve studied them and spent hours looking at their paintings, doing master copies in black and white of their work,\u201d she explained, adding that she focused on incorporating \u201cthe principles and concepts and beauty in that art into the portraits I was doing for people.\u201d As she mastered these techniques, more referrals and commissions came. <\/p>\n

\u201cI started to go more and more niche,\u201d she said, as Catholic or other religious people began requesting she paint their loved ones who had died. Jameson asked to know everything about the subjects \u201cbecause I wanted to paint their presence, not just a photograph,\u201d she said. \u201cI would pour my heart and soul into it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Raising her children meant working on her art at night and on weekends because \u201cit just exploded. People loved it.\u201d She even had a waiting list. \u201cIt was really wonderful. And I still love doing portraits for people \u2014 or like the portrait of St. Th\u00e9r\u00e8se<\/a>: I had been reading about her so much, and I was trying to paint her presence, not just the photographic likeness [of her].\u201d That similar style is reflected in her commissioned private portraits.<\/p>\n

\"St.St. Th\u00e9r\u00e8se by June Jameson(Photo: Courtesy of June Jameson) <\/p>\n

Her favorite portraits to create are of the Blessed Mother and the Infant Jesus<\/a>. One includes a little lamb she did in homage to William-Adolphe Bouguereau and his timeless classic painting titled L\u2019Innocence.<\/a> When the family returned to Florida, Jameson added another dimension to her work. She looked to Monet and the French Impressionists and \u201creally got a deep appreciation for their work,\u201d she said, explaining how she brought impressionism to a new level with religious subjects and imagery not done before.<\/p>\n

\"JuneJune Jameson works on Christocentric art.(Photo: Courtesy of June Jameson) <\/p>\n

After seeing Our Lady of Grace<\/a>, customers wanted more in that style. Soon came Our Lady, Star of the Sea, The Nativity<\/a> and The Annunciation<\/a>. <\/p>\n

\"MarianMarian art is a focus of June Jameson.(Photo: Courtesy of June Jameson)
\n Honing Her Style <\/p>\n

Then as her children got older, Jameson started returning to classical realism. \u201cBut this time I felt like I was better because I had taken that detour,\u201d she said. \u201cI started bringing some of those more abstract elements into my realism, which is basically what the St. Maximillian Kolbe painting<\/a> is,\u201d she explained, noting the roses and barbed wire behind him in her rendition. \u201cThat\u2019s what you would call imaginative realism,\u201d she explained. \u201cThat would be my official most-loved style.\u201d<\/p>\n

For instance, Jameson describes how The Visitation<\/a> and The Holy Spirit and the Garden combine realism with impressionism. \u201cThe figures and faces are more realist, but all the flowers are impressionistic, and it\u2019s a little imaginative as well,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn preparation for that painting and reading about the Visitation, I read there was a legend that in every place Our Lady stepped on her journey to see her cousin, Our Lady\u2019s slipper plant grew, which is why it\u2019s named for that.\u201d These flowers are delicate native orchids in pink and occasionally white and yellow that resemble lady\u2019s slippers. In the painting, where Mary is depicted coming down a staircase, she added, \u201cThere\u2019s a trail of flowers behind her because when I read that, I was like, \u2018I have to paint that!\u2019 Visually, what more could you want as an artist?\u201d<\/p>\n

Jameson is now also working on a commission to paint all 20 Mysteries of the Rosary for a national Catholic organization for devotional use and wide distribution across the Catholic community.<\/p>\n

The Rosary is one of her favorite devotions. \u201cI try to pray the Rosary daily,\u201d she said. That also connects to the portrait of St. Maximilian Kolbe and her devotion to the Auschwitz martyr who loved Mary. \u201cHe has appeared in my life so frequently,\u201d she said. \u201cHe was huge on the Rosary. And he\u2019s been a really good role model for my sons.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"St.June Jameson and her baby look upon her portrait of St. Maximilian Kolbe.(Photo: Courtesy of June Jameson) <\/p>\n

Jameson\u2019s goal of painting large murals is also well underway. She has completed The Crucifixion at the Sisters of Nazareth Retreat Center in Grand Prairie, Texas, and in the works is a commissioned 17-foot, fine-art mural of the Nativity done in marouflage (a centuries-old technique of painting on canvas, usually mural-sized, which is then fastened to a wall or ceiling with an adhesive). She cannot yet reveal who commissioned it. Other works and murals for \u201creally large Catholic spaces\u201d are in the queue, including six murals for a major Catholic institution, \u201cwhich is phenomenal,\u201d Jameson said. \u201cI never thought I\u2019d be able to do this, and here I am. I wanted to paint huge fine-art murals for churches and cathedrals, and that\u2019s what I\u2019m doing right now. It\u2019s a dream come true.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\u2018LordJune Jameson looks upon her \u2018Lord of Hope\u2019 painting.(Photo: Courtesy of June Jameson) <\/p>\n

Customers are grateful for her work.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the most beautiful work of art that I have ever seen. My heart is overwhelmed with love as I look at this print,\u201d Shellie posted on Etsy about Christ Carrying the Cross.<\/p>\n

Harmonee also wrote on Etsy, about Our Lady of Grace, \u201cMy favorite piece of art! So beautiful!\u201d<\/p>\n

For Jameson, it means lots of sacrifice. \u201cBut it\u2019s not impossible,\u201d she said. \u201cBasically, for art, I\u2019ve given up television.\u201d She has not watched a TV show in \u201cso many years. Any free time I have, it\u2019s learning about art and looking at art because it\u2019s after my vocation as a mother and my love for my children.\u201d<\/p>\n

Looking back on everything until now, she sees God\u2019s hand in these artistic steps, recalling how she would \u201cpray to God, \u2018If this is what you want me to do, open a door; open a path for me and help me get better.\u2019 And he would, always within a day or two, send me some guidance or send me on a path. I\u2019m just so blessed and grateful to be able to do this.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI basically want to paint God\u2019s truth and then also to bring heaven down to earth visually,\u201d she said of her purpose and her vision in her art. \u201cAnd all for his greater honor and glory. That\u2019s my highest goal. I don\u2019t want to paint anything else.\u201d<\/p>\n

LEARN MORE<\/p>\n

Visit June Jameson\u2019s new website: JuneJameson.art<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Sacred artist June Jameson was trained in both Old Masters classical realism and French impressionism, and she is…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":551523,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[437,434,435,436,250507,250506,438,146,85,46,250505],"class_list":["post-551522","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-arts-and-design","tag-arts","tag-arts-and-design","tag-artsanddesign","tag-artsdesign","tag-catholic-art","tag-catholic-artists","tag-design","tag-entertainment","tag-il","tag-israel","tag-sacred-art"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/551522","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=551522"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/551522\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/551523"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=551522"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=551522"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=551522"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}