Jaycee Guttormson
Artist-in-Residence
“Good luck out there, pal.”
2026 | Mixed media on canvas
Jaycee Guttormson earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts with a minor in Psychology from the University of North Florida. Coming from a family of artists, she has been drawing from a young age. Her work has appeared in publications including Sanctuary, Compos Mentis, and Pandion, and can be found in the Jacksonville Public Library and the Flatwoods Monster Museum in West Virginia. Her personal practice centers on oil painting, watercolor, illustration, storytelling, and the uncanny.
Created collaboratively with her brother Evan, the piece brings the artists’ own imagery together with artwork given to them by patients, making the relationship between artist and patient part of the work itself.
In Her Own Words
What drew you to Art with a Heart in Healthcare?
I first joined AWAHIH as an intern in 2022 and became an Artist-in-Residence in 2023. I was drawn to this work because I wanted to utilize my skills as an artist to help children and families create some good memories in the midst of difficult situations.
How would you describe your personal art practice?
I focus on oil paint, watercolor, and illustration. My work explores the uncanny, questions of reality, and storytelling.
My artistic style leans into the illustrative. My approach to creating revolves around conveying a story and placing the viewer in the scene.
Tell us about the piece you created with Evan.
For this exhibition, Evan and I collaborated on a painting that would convey our experiences with AWAHIH, centering around our work in both pediatric and adult behavioral health units.
The piece incorporates both of our artistic styles as well as artwork given to us by patients in these units. We wanted to highlight the patients’ work while unifying the image with art of our own, exemplifying the collaboration between artist and patient.
How does the piece reflect your experience with AWAHIH?
It reflects our experience not only through the collaboration between patient and artist, but by showing the wide range of people and art that are part of the healthcare setting.
What do you hope viewers take away from it?
We hope viewers take away that through art, beauty and creativity can flourish in the seemingly darkest of situations, and that life is a book being continually written.
