by Melissa Fox
Like any true Texan, Jordan Crabill believes that bigger is better, more is more, and there’s no such thing as too much glitter!
Born and raised in Palestine, Texas, Jordan was heavily immersed in many art forms within her small community from a young age and throughout high school. She then attended the University of Texas at Tyler and earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in 2011. In college she focused mainly in ceramics as a hand builder in clay, which she still loves and misses dearly. She stayed active in the community throughout her college career by volunteering her skills for local nonprofit organizations. She has been married to her high school sweetheart, John, for 15 years and they have a 9-year-old son, Creed.
After college she knew she wanted to move back to her hometown and pursue her dream to become a full-time artist and painter. She began by posting images of her artwork on her Instagram account and quickly grew a following of customers and fans of her work. From her small studio space in downtown Palestine, named Glitterboxx Studio, she loves creating large scale, colorful pieces and incorporating lots of sequins, glitter and anything that sparkles! Her “behind the scenes” videos are popular among her online followers who love to watch her works of art come to life.
She says that her colorful artwork embodies the Texas culture of big hair, big personality, cowgirl boots and of course, lots of rhinestones. She even coined the term “Patriotic-Pop” to define her unique style of combining beloved American icons, like Elton John and Dolly Parton, with fun and frivolous subject matter.
While Jordan would describe herself as a trained Fine Art painter, she has enjoyed exploring the playful Pop Art style. But more recently, she has gained popularity for what she calls her “Hometown Prints” as featured on the cover of this issue of TYLER TODAY.
The idea came to her while vacationing in Florida last fall. She was inspired by a map she saw at a beach shop which served as a guide of local hot spots, events, and historical sites to visit. She thought to herself “I need one of these for MY hometown in Palestine!” … and the moment her plane landed she got started.
She began by compiling a list of all the “truly local” and “quintessential Palestine” places and events that she could think of. Some of the icons that made the original print were staples in the community and were actually no longer in business, like Herschel’s and Chips Burger Village—she decided they just could not be left out. The response to her first “Hometown Print, Palestine” was overwhelmingly positive and she began receiving requests from friends and followers in nearby Tyler. It seemed only natural that her second “Hometown Print” would feature Tyler, as that had been her second hometown in real life.
While creating the Tyler print she posted daily to her Instagram account and tagged the local businesses and organizations that she was including. Before she was finished with the print, Visit Tyler contacted her about getting the print in their storefront. This was her first wholesale order. Visit Tyler has reordered three times since.
After the Palestine and Tyler prints were created, she was flooded with requests from followers in other cities who wanted ones for their hometowns. Next came Fort Worth, then Baton Rouge and now she has created seven different prints of towns from Lubbock to 30A in Florida.
Jordan admits that the Tyler print is actually her favorite thus far because she believes “that there is something just so special about the Rose City!” She especially loves partnering with local retailers in the towns she features to carry her art because it brings the customers face-to-face with something they can touch and experience unlike shopping online.
Jordan has always been a self-proclaimed hometown girl. She wants to leave a legacy as someone who helped her little hometown, and others who love their hometowns just as much, to not only grow and flourish but to celebrate the memories created in all the little places they call home.