We at Illinois News Joint are please to bring Illinoisans our inaugural installment of “Cannabis Art” and excited to publish our first art piece, Orange Kush, by Mary Jane Art Company.

The artist, who we’ll call M-JAC for confidentially reasons, curates Mary Jane Art Company out of San Diego.

M-JAC creates “Cannabis Pop Art” on wood blocks and can be found on Instagram @maryjaneartcompany.

M-JAC’s love for art bloomed when her “amazing” mother drove her all over “all over creation to different art classes with different local artists to study and create.” She continued attending art classes into her teens.

Sour Sherbet by Mary Jane Art Company

“I loved studying under different artists who were doing what I wanted to do,” she said. “They inspired me to become who I am today. They inspire me to never give up on my dreams.”

Her most influential childhood idol and artist was Russel Allen Taylor.

“He was the creative that opened up the portal to art,” she said. “Once a week, I would go to his studio, White Wing Studios, and for two hours, I would have complete artistic freedom. I wanted to be just like him. And since then I’ve been painting everyday working my way towards my dream.”

Image by Mary Jane Art Company

Not only does M-JAC create Cannabis Pop Art but she also “partakes” during the artistic process.

“Cannabis sets my mind free,” she said. “It allows me to focus on just one thing when I’m painting. My art. I deal with extreme anxiety and muscle pain. I want to excite people about cannabis, and it’s healing powers.”

She was introduced to cannabis at age nineteen with her boyfriend and friend in a passenger seat of an old Toyota Camry in a vacant dirt lot. She was skeptical at first because it was never a topic of discussion within her family.

“I knew nothing about it but I did know that I was falling completely head over heels for it,” she said. “I wanted to be a part of the growing movement.”

​She also paints other artistic subject matter and teaches art lessons at Painting with a Twist. Painting with a Twist is all about connecting with friends over a glass of wine, your favorite snacks, a night of laughs, and painting.

To contact Mary Jane Art Company for questions or queries about her art, click here.

Image by Mary Jane Art Company

For more  “Cannabis Art” features, click here.