A long, long way from band-aids, magic markers and tape, but still in love with media and tools, Jan still makes her own stuff, but now it's on a computer with a pen tablet.

She has worked in many and mixed media, from pencil, oil painting and acrylic painting to intaglio printmaking, gelatin printing, and collage. At one point, she even made her own paints from powdered pigment.

 One of her great interests is in the process of creating and getting herself, and those around her, to move from the question of 'can it be done' to the point of 'yes, it is done'. Her work has changed in the years since a mild case of fibromyalgia got in the way of doing the most physical and obsessive work, and turned her to her current computer-aided process.

Ms. Blacka has served on the board of the Loudoun Arts Council and, in the spirit of full disclosure, recently joined the Friends of Franklin Park Arts Center board.

She earned her BA at Williams College in Massachusetts and her MFA at the Maryland Institute College of Art.

Jan has worked as a studio assistant for Master Printmaker Dale Bradley and American Craft Council fiber artist Susan Levi-Goerlich. She has taught art in many venues, including summer camp, various art centers including Ursa Major Arts with Rosemary Starace, and the Maryland College of Art and Design.