Jordyn Owens’ art is a meditation on the overlooked—the quiet beauty hidden in the mundane, the subtle and the fleeting.
Owens, who was named the Reno City Artist of 2025 in January, uses photography, collage and her own spiritual practices to uncover layers of meaning in everyday moments. She invites her audience to see the world through a different lens.
Owens was born and raised in Reno, and her artistic journey began several years ago, when she discovered a camera for sale on Craigslist. With no formal training and little other artistic inclination, she took a leap of faith, letting the camera guide her explorations of both the external world and her own evolving sense of self.
“I was always aware of just seeing beauty in the mundane,” Owens said. “I wasn’t sure how I could capture that. I never had a camera or anything like that. It was just in moments with my friends or family, where I’d admire the smallest things—like a crack in a pavement or the light in a window—just mundane things that people often overlook.”
She began documenting her life—intimate moments with loved ones that quietly captured the essence of connection and vulnerability. As her passion for the medium grew, she realized that she couldn’t craft the images she was drawn to with just her friends and family in the frame.
She pushed herself to photograph strangers, but the shift wasn’t easy. Owens found it daunting to approach people she didn’t know. But her desire to grow as an artist led her to reach out via social media, which slowly led her to build a portfolio of portraiture that became central to her work.
Owens eventually enrolled at the University of Nevada, Reno. She said her professors first pushed her to question the deeper purpose of her work. She earned her bachelor’s degree in 2023.
As she prepared for her first gallery show, her work crystallized. She shifted from documenting the abstract to addressing themes that are more subconscious—like generational trauma, heritage and the spiritual connections she felt with her ancestors. She began incorporating traditional African-American spiritual practices—such as prayer and altar-building—into her life and her art. She plans to investigate her Filipino roots as well.
“Their presence is there,” Owens said of her ancestors. “Through my artwork, I show gratitude to them. I feel like I access more knowledge through honoring them and doing a lot of research into connecting with the unseen.”
In the past few years, Owens’ artistic work has blossomed alongside a career in commercial portraiture. Three years ago, she had a transformative experience with group collage-making at The Generator—one that would expand her creative language.
“We were strangers, but we were creating these pieces together,” she said. “What I liked most about it was the amount of images you get to see; you don’t really know why you’re pulling these papers out or what’s calling to you, and you only kind of realize it … (when) it’s done.”
Collage allowed her to explore her creativity in a different way, channeling the playful nature of her inner child while tapping into to a greater wisdom.
“It’s full access to anything,” she said. “I have so much collage material at home, I feel like I’m becoming a hoarder. But that variety—it’s insane. It allows me to go deeper. I have a sketchbook full of different collages, and I’m so grateful for it. When I go back to them, I see themes that were developing months ago, and they’re still bleeding into the work that I’m doing now.”
Owens’ journey as an artist has also been shaped by a larger social context—one that she said is sometimes difficult for artists of color. As a Black artist in a predominantly white local art scene, she’s faced feelings of isolation and self-doubt, particularly in academic settings, where she is often the only person of color.
Upon being named Reno City Artist, Owens had some mixed emotions. Though she is grateful for the opportunity and ready to do the work, she feels cautious about the potential for tokenism that can come with such accolades.
“I’m grateful, but I wouldn’t say it’s validating,” Owens said. “When I was in academia, I feel like I was often tokenized for the work that I was doing, so those factors still weigh in when I get achievements.”
Still, Owens sees the recognition as an opportunity. This summer, as part of her official city duties, she will curate an exhibition at the Metro Gallery in City Hall in collaboration with Of the Sol, a collective she co-founded to support local artists of color.
She’ll also have two solo shows, one at the Northwest Reno Library beginning March 1, and one at the Metro Gallery in May.
Through all of her work—whether photography, collage or curatorial efforts—Owens strives to create a space for her community, to honor the ancestors who guide her, and to celebrate the transformative effect her art has had on her personally.
“I’ve changed so much throughout the years,” she said. “I’m like a different person from when I started in 2019. But the accomplishments that I’ve had have all been internal. They’ve all been healing moments of me understanding where I was when I picked up my camera—this really insecure, shy person—to where I am now.”
Jordyn Owens’ solo exhibition Beyond the Matrix will be on display from Saturday, March 1, through Sunday, April 20, at the Northwest Reno Library, 2325 Robb Drive. There will be a reception from 1 to 2 p.m., Saturday, March 15. Learn more at jordynowens.art.
This article was produced by Double Scoop, Nevada’s news source for visual arts.