Jane Ingram Allen
SCG Artist Resident 2025 - National
Artist in Residence
Open Studio Hours
Exclusive Workshops
Artist Lectures
The Susan Cooley-Gilliom Artist in Residence and Teaching (SCG ART) Program is a remarkable gift to our community's artists, arts educators, students, and arts enthusiasts. This program embodies Susan’s enduring legacy as a cherished local artist and passionate environmental advocate. The SCG ART program is dedicated to nurturing and elevating the visual arts through inspiring short-term residencies and workshops led by nationally acclaimed artists working in diverse media. Since 2023, we have expanded the program to provide artists with two annual opportunities to apply: one for Local Artists residing in Placer and surrounding counties, and another for National Artists across the United States.
In 2010, the Cooley-Gilliom Artist in Residence and Teaching (ART) The program was established at Placer Community Foundation through an endowed gift made in memory of Susan by her family and the Sky View Foundation. The ART program represents a lasting legacy to the beloved local artist and environmental advocate. Short-term residencies and workshops taught Susan by established and highly reputable artists are offered to develop and enhance the visual arts in Placer County. To learn more about Susan and this lasting gift to the community, visit placercf.org.
Meet Jane Ingram Allen
Stop by to meet Jane Ingram Allen, our SCG National Artist in Residence for 2025. Learn about her process, and explore how her work raises awareness about water, climate change, and our deep connection to the natural world.
You're also invited to participate in hands-on workshops led by Jane, where you'll have the opportunity to experiment with papermaking, explore sustainable materials, and contribute to a collaborative community artwork. All are welcome!
Jane Ingram Allen2025 National SCG Resident & Teaching Artist
My indoor and outdoor art installations start with making the paper by hand using local waste plant materials (leaves and bark) and plant fibers (from old blue jeans and sheet pulps). I also use seeds for wildflowers or to feed the birds in the pulp to produce continually evolving artworks that transform with nature as a partner. In my recent “Living Quilts” outdoor installations, the handmade paper dissolves over time becoming compost to nourish the earth, and the seeds sprout and grow to produce food and habitat for wildlife as well as aesthetic experiences for humans bringing us closer to the wonders of nature.
The structures I create, such as the nests or the beds with a headboard and footboard on which the “living quilt” is placed, are made of wood and branches and last well for many years, until they too dissolve as compost to nourish the earth. These works comment on our vain hope for permanency in art and our desire to conquer nature rather than exist in harmony with the earth. With my latest projects focused on water and climate change, I hope to raise awareness about our dire circumstances, with too little water and too much water in different places at different times, and project optimism for a better future with seeds that depend on water like all life to sprout and grow into new life. I also focus on rivers and other waterways that connect and conduct life like the veins and arteries in our bodies. Mapping the lines of rivers and waterways with paper and threads is a way of understanding the path of water through our lives.
~Jane Ingram Allen
SCG ART Program Events
Blue Line Arts offers activities as a special opportunity for our community to meet with the artist and learn about their craft first hand. Additional details coming soon!
SCG Workshop l with Jane Ingram Allen | From Plant to Paper!
In this workshop we will make paper from local plant waste materials, starting with gathered plant materials and ending with handmade paper artworks created from local plant sources (leaves and…
SCG Open Studio Hours with Jane Ingram Allen
“The structures I create, such as the nests or the beds with a headboard and footboard on which the “living quilt” is placed, are made of wood and branches and…
SCG Workshop ll with Jane Ingram Allen | Going Global – International Residencies for Artists (Zoom and In-Person)
Ready to take your art practice worldwide? Join artist Jane Ingram Allen for an info-packed workshop on how to find, apply for, and thrive in international artist residencies. Jane will…
SCG Artist Lecture with Jane Ingram Allen
Join us for a lecture with environmental artist Jane Ingram Allen as she shares her journey of creating art in harmony with nature. Known for her handmade paper works embedded…
Need Financial Assistance? Attend an SCG ART Workshop for FREE
Stipends for free workshop registrations are available for Local Artists (residing in Placer and surrounding counties: Yolo, Sacramento, El Dorado, Nevada County ) and are generously provided by the Placer Community Foundation.
Applications are due by 11:59pm on Friday, August 29th, 2025
Award Notification by: Friday, September 5th, 2025
How It All Started
The Susan Cooley-Gilliom Artist in Residence and Teaching (SCG ART) Program is a lasting gift to the many artists, arts educators and students, and arts enthusiasts we are fortunate to have in our community. The program represents a significant part of Susan’s lasting legacy–as a beloved local artist and environmental advocate.
The ART program works to develop and enhance the visual arts through short-term residencies and workshops taught by nationally-established and highly reputable artists who create in a range of media.
Since 2023, this program has been expanded as a twice annual opportunity for artists to apply. One for Local Artists (residing in Placer and surrounding counties) and the other for a National Artist residing anywhere in the United States. To apply, please check out our upcoming Calls to Artists.
Past visiting artists include:
- 2025 Jane Ingram Allen - National
- 2025 Ray Gonzales - Local
- 2024 Ruth Ellen Hoag - National
- 2024 Marsha Godoy Schindler - Local
- 2023 Kevin Snipes - National
- 2023 Jennifer Rugge - Local
- 2022: Mark Abildgaard
- 2021: Jason Walker
- 2019: Ana Lisa Hedstrom
- 2018: Michelle Gregor
- 2017: Karen Willenbrink-Johnson
- 2016: Phoebe Toland
- 2015: Sergei Isupov
- 2014: Tip Toland
- 2013: Laura Ross Paul
- 2012: Katherine Ace
- 2011: Richard Notkin
To learn more about Susan Cooley-Gilliom and this lasting gift to the community, visit The Placer Community Foundation.
In 2010 the Susan Cooley-Gilliom Artist in Residence and Teaching (ART)
Program was established at Placer Community Foundation through an
endowed gift made in memory of Susan by her family and the Sky View
Foundation. The ART program represents a lasting legacy to the beloved
local artist and environmental advocate. Short-term residencies and
workshops taught by established and highly-reputable artists are offered to
develop and enhance the visual arts in Placer County. To learn more about
Susan and this lasting gift to community, visit placercf.org.