Jane Tardo

New Orleans, Louisiana

Artworks shown are selected from works submitted by the artist in their grant or residency application. All works are copyright of the artist or artist’s estate.

About Jane Tardo

Jane Tardo smiles brightly, wearing a patterned scarf, and a denim shirt with dinosaur appliqués on the shoulders. They are a white person with light skin tone, and have brown straight hair in an asymmetrical cut and bangs.

Jane Tardo is a born and based New Orleans artist. In 2005, they became a climate refugee following the levee failures of Hurricane Katrina. Being an early survivor of the effects of climate change is a dynamic source of Tardo’s focus on dystopic/utopic futures and the dream of a better world. Their themes are defined by existing in a post-Roe South while enduring generational burdens of poverty and sexism. Regardless of the frustrations of daily living, Tardo’s work revels in their region’s defiance of reason to give up hope, togetherness, and the joie de vivre.

Tardo earned their MFA from the University of New Orleans in 2020. Their work has been written about in The Washington Post, Antigravity Magazine, The Art Newspaper, ARTnews, and Pelican Bomb. Currently, Tardo serves as an instructor of sculpture at the University of New Orleans, and as a sewing educator and volunteer at RicRack NOLA community sewing center.

Program Participation

Joan Mitchell Center Residency, 2024

Website / Social Links

Through my interactive installations, I document the complexity and confusion of contemporary life. I obsess around utopic/dystopic themes, and fears about the future. I counter this fear with work that is intentionally delightful and humorous.”