Photos: JuliAnne Jonker
An Apple Valley artist builds a welcoming, creative space in her art-filled home.
Just as a canvas is transformed into a work of art through many layers of paint, Apple Valley artist JuliAnne Jonker’s home has become a work of art through many years of living. For 35 years, the home has served Jonker and her family, acting as home base for Jonker’s four children, playhouse for her seven grandchildren, a backdrop for Jonker’s thriving photography business and a studio for Jonker’s paintings. Now that she and her husband, Kurt, are empty nesters, they continue to open their home as a retreat for artists and writers.
When they moved into the Orrin Thompson home in 1989, Jonker wasn’t too enamored with the design, but she had a vision, and it started by adding dormer rooms upstairs. After the dormers, they embarked on a year-long renovation that added a 2,500-foot studio to the house by digging into the ground, making room for a photography studio, a space for framing, and a dressing room with 300-some professional costumes for photo shoots. A yoga studio and second kitchen in the unfinished basement were additional improvements.
JuliAnne Jonker’s photography studio is filled with different backdrops and photo props.
Then came the porch and a deck, facing the pond in the back of their house. “I always wanted a front porch, and I was so bummed when we couldn’t do it,” Jonker says. “But now that it’s here, why would I want to look at the street? So it ended up being awesome.”
The siding was completely torn off the house as a part of the renovations, and they replaced it with brick, stucco and ivy after being inspired by visits to the East Coast. Outside, Jonker spent years converting a weedy backyard into a landscape fit for photo backdrops, making good use of the mature trees on the lot and adding to them with shade-loving perennials, including hostas, lily of the valley and her grandma’s peonies. In the front yard, a Japanese maple is thriving despite Minnesota’s harsh climate, and a Free Little Library is an invitation for neighbors to browse.
JuliAnne Jonker designed shade-loving perennial gardens among the mature trees in her backyard.
When it comes to decorating the house, Jonker’s decisions are both practical (grayish-green paint on the walls because it makes a great background for portraits) and whimsical. She mixes vintage pieces with industrial, and she’s also incorporated quite a few pieces from India that came via Los Angeles. Jonker frequents Facebook Marketplace and is always on the lookout for pieces that will add aesthetic appeal as well as organization to her studio. “If I had another lifetime, I’d be an antique dealer,” she says.
Sculptures and paintings—both her own and work she’s collected from other artists—are prominently displayed throughout her home. “I collect artwork, even though I sell [my own] art work,” she says. “I have over 60 pieces.”
This painting studio/living room/art gallery is part of the addition that the Jonkers added to their home.
Of course, Jonker’s house isn’t just for displaying art. It’s also for creating. She fell in love with art as a high school student when she took an art history and criticism class. Her art career began in junior high, when she sold her first painting to the principal at Nicollet Junior High School in Burnsville.
As a young mother, Jonker mainly focused on calligraphy and watercolor because they were easy to clean up with small children. She launched her photography business while raising young children because the flexibility allowed her to schedule photo shoots around her family’s schedule.
As she built her photography business, Jonker took classes at the Minnesota River School of Fine Art in Burnsville and began to incorporate more painting, drawing and sculpture into her creative life. Jonker’s work has been displayed at galleries throughout the world, and 15 of her paintings were sent to the moon as a part of the Lunar Codex.
She also taught painting and photography classes, which led to in-home classes and workshops. Eventually, the workshops evolved into her concept for The Nest. Writers and artists from around the country have stayed at her house for extended periods, sometimes using the space as an artistic retreat and other times taking classes from Jonker. “I really changed from scheduled workshops to The Nest, so that the classes would be smaller,” she says. “I really love to work one-on-one with people who want to learn.”
JuliAnne Jonker
Facebook: JuliAnne Jonker
Instagram: @juliannejonker_fineart
