Barbara Courtney Jaenicke (pronounced JAN-i-kee) loved drawing and painting as a child, but she can't really say that there was any teacher or family member who identified her as a particularly gifted artist at a young age. It was simply stubborn determination beginning in her early teen years that launched her artistic journey. Her grandmother was an accomplished oil painter, and although she didn't directly encourage Barbara to follow in her footsteps, Barbara's childhood was surrounded by her beautiful paintings.
Barbara's earliest training was with the late Juanita Crosby in Bordentown, NJ, who instilled a strong initial foundation of painting basics, and with whom she studied during her high school and college years.
Not realizing that a career in fine art could be a possibility, she steered her initial career choice toward another art-related field, receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1986 from The College of New Jersey (formerly Trenton State College), majoring in Art with an emphasis in Advertising and Design.
Barbara's early career was spent in advertising as an art director, then later in corporate marketing communications. Without much time for painting during these earlier careers, she always knew she would eventually continue her original artistic passion, and in 1999 she gradually but intensely began to do so. Finally, in 2002, she was able to turn her focus to a fine art career, pursuing it full steam ahead.
